Cleaning woman pleads guilty in theft of $3M bust

BRYN MAWR, Pa. - December 18, 2012 (WPVI) -- A cleaning woman accused of stealing a rare $3 million bust of Benjamin Franklin from a Main Line home has entered a guilty plea in the case.

Andrea Lawton, 46, of Mobile, Alabama, pleaded guilty Tuesday to transporting stolen property across state lines.

Prosecutors say Lawton took the bust from a home in Bryn Mawr, Pa and eventually ended up in Alabama where she made plans to sell the stolen item.

She was later arrested after taking a bus trip to Elkton, Maryland, where investigators recovered the bust.

Police said Lawton told them she took the bust because she had been fired and was angry at her former employer.

Lawton faces up to ten years behind bars, three years' supervised release, a half million dollar fine and a $200 special assessment.

Sentencing has been set for March 12, 2013.

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robbery, pennsylvania, montgomery county, local/state

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