NEW YORK -- Frank DiSanto says he's an art lover. So when he saw five antique silk prints enclosed in glass at the Alitalia lounge at Kennedy Airport, he thought they were being thrown away -- and took them.

Yeah, right, say detectives who tracked and arrested him in just four hours.The 24-year-old baggage handler was charged with stealing $5 million worth of artwork that once hung in the Sistine Chapel.

Catching DiSanto wasn't hard: He had left behind a dental appointment card with his name on it Wednesday, investigators said.

"He told us he thought they were being thrown out so he took them," said detective Lt. Bobby Caron of the Port Authority Police. "He said he appreciates art and was just going to hang them in his bedroom to look at them."

The tapestries that once hung among Michelangelo's frescos were found stuffed in a garbage bag at DiSanto's home.

They date from the seventh to the 14th centuries and had been a gift from the Vatican. They had been on display but were taken down because the airline was moving to the other side of the terminal.

The framed prints were still in their glass case housing in the lounge's kitchen. DiSanto allegedly bent back the wood frame, slid the glass out and ripped the tapestries out of their frames.

Join the Conversation
Looking for comments?
Find comments in their new home! Click the buttons at the top or within the article to view them — or use the button below for quick access.