Seven Chilean nationals have been charged with conspiracy to commit interstate transportation of stolen property after they allegedly broke in and stole property worth more than $2 million from the homes of professional athletes.
According to a federal criminal complaint unsealed Tuesday in Tampa, Fla., the defendants have been targeting athletes in the United States since October, executing well-planned burglaries of their homes while they competed in games. If convicted, the defendants each face a maximum of 10 years in prison.
The suspects apparently couldn’t keep from incriminating themselves, however. Three of those charged — Pablo Zuniga Cartes, 24, Ignacio Zuniga Cartes, 20, and Bastian Jimenez Freraut, 27 — are in a photo preening next to a safe containing watches, chains, jewelry, designer bags and cash stolen from the Wisconsin home of Milwaukee Bucks player Bobby Portis. The value of property stolen was approximately $1.484 million, according to the complaint.
Dodgers, Rams and LAFC players have been among those targeted, but it’s unclear if those break-ins are connected to other organized South American theft groups.
The home of LAFC striker Olivier Giroud was the target of a burglary earlier this month, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. Police said they responded Feb. 5 to a report of a smashed upstairs window and the burglary. Law enforcement sources told The Times that half a million dollars worth of items were taken from the house, including expensive watches.
The Los Angeles homes of Dodgers infielders Max Muncy and Freddie Freeman were burglarized in 2023. Muncy’s home was broken into by two suspects while he and his family were at Dodger Stadium. Freeman’s home also was burglarized while he was away.
Thieves took an estimated $30,000 worth of jewelry from Luka Doncic’s home in Dallas while he was on the road Dec. 30 before the superstar guard was traded to the Lakers by the Mavericks. And the Medina, Minn., home of Mike Conley Jr. was burglarized while the guard was playing in a game with the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Although the names of victims were omitted from the federal complaint, the dates and locations of the burglaries line up with several high-profile thefts that have been reported.
The homes of Kansas City Chiefs stars Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce were burglarized of jewelry, watches, cash and other luxury merchandise Oct. 5 and 7. The second burglary occurred while the team played a game.
Also detailed in the complaint, the home of a Tampa Bay Buccaneers player was burglarized while the team played a home game. Jewelry and a firearm were stolen.
Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow had his Anderson Township, Ohio, home broken into Dec. 9 while at a game in Dallas. The complaint notes the date of a burglary at a “Cincinnati player’s home” as Dec. 9. In an earlier court filing, some of the same defendants were charged with stealing $300,000 worth of designer luggage, watches and jewelry from Burrow’s house.
Photos showed one suspect wearing a gaudy necklace with Burrow’s No. 9 jersey number. Sergio Ortega Cabello, 38, rented a car in Florida with a fraudulent Argentinean ID and allegedly used it in the burglary, according to prosecutors.
A federal grand jury in Cincinnati on Feb. 5 charged Cabello, Jordan Quiroga Sanchez, 22, and Bastian Orellano Morales, 23, with transporting stolen goods interstate and falsifying records in a federal investigation in connection with the Burrows burglary.
“Our investigation remains ongoing as these individuals seem to be the alleged tip of the iceberg of South American Theft Groups committing crimes throughout our district and elsewhere,” U.S. Atty. Kenneth L. Parker said after the charges were filed. “We owe it to the victims, whether they are or are not professional athletes, to follow the evidence into these alleged criminal networks and hold the law-breakers accountable.
“I cannot thank our law enforcement partners enough for their commitment to working together to track down these perpetrators. Today is a day that law enforcement scored and spiked the ball.”
The string of thefts prompted the FBI to issue a warning to sports leagues noting that crime groups are targeting athletes’ homes in pursuit of cash and valuables. The FBI bulletin said that members of criminal gangs “conduct physical and technical surveillance in preparation for these burglaries.
“Organized theft groups bypass alarm systems, use Wi-Fi jammers to block Wi-Fi connections and disable devices, cover security cameras, and obfuscate their identities,” the FBI bulletin continued.
In a warning the NFL issued to players in November, the league said thieves “appear to exploit team schedules to target athletes’ homes on game days.”
Players were advised to avoid sharing their location on social media in real time, and to ensure that their valuables could not be viewed from outside their home, according to NFL.com. The warning shared in the recent FBI report echoed this advice and also recommended that athletes keep a close inventory of their valuables and refrain from sharing pictures of the interior of their homes on social media.
In addition to Pablo Zuniga Cartes, Ignacio Zuniga Cartes, Cabello, Freraut, Sanchez and Morales, Alexander Huiaguil Chavez, 24, was charged as part of the South American theft group.
Times staff writer Richard Winton contributed to this report.
