KANSAS CITY, Mo. (WDAF) — Seven Chilean nationals face federal charges related to the burglaries of several high-profile athletes’ homes.
The indictment was unsealed in Tampa, Florida, on Tuesday. The suspects have been identified as 24-year-old Pablo Zuniga Cartes, 20-year-old Ignacio Zuniga Cartes, 27-year-old Bastian Jimenez Freraut, 22-year-old Jordan Quiroga Sanchez, 23-year-old Bastian Orellano Morales, 24-year-old Alexander Huiaguil Chavez and 38-year-old Sergio Ortega Cabello.
All the suspects face charges of conspiracy to transport stolen property.
According to the complaint, the suspects were members of a South American theft group that burglarized the homes of professional athletes around the country, allegedly stealing valuables worth over $2 million.
The photo, seen further down in this story, from the U.S. Attorney in Tampa shows some of the suspects wearing Chiefs clothing and jewelry while posing with a safe.
While a press release did not identify the athletes that were targeted, authorities said the homes of two Chiefs players were burglarized on October 5 and 7. Burglaries were reported at the homes of quarterback Patrick Mahomes and tight end Travis Kelce on those days.
The complaint also accused the group of targeting the home of a Tampa Bay Buccaneers player in late October, taking jewelry, designer watches, a luxury suitcase, and a firearm. That player has not yet been identified.
Authorities have also accused the group of burglarizing the home of a Milwaukee Bucks player while he was playing in an early November game. During that same time, Bucks player Bobby Portis said his home had been burglarized.
Prosecutors allege the suspects took “a safe containing several watches, chains, personal items, jewelry, and cash, along with a designer suitcase and designer bags,” worth a total of $1.484 million. Three suspects — Pablo Zuniga Cartes, Ignacio Zuniga Cartes, Bastian Jimenez Freraut — and a fourth person then took the photo, seen below, with the safe and jewelry, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Authorities say the suspects were also connected to the burglaries at the homes of Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow in early December and of a Memphis Grizzlies player who has not been identified. The values of the items stolen from these homes totaled about $300,000 and $1 million, respectively.
Earlier this month, two people were arrested in connection to numerous burglaries “targeting wealthier neighborhoods.” Dimitriy Nezhinskiy, 43, of North Bergen, New Jersey, and Juan Villar, 48, of Queens, were accused of receiving luxury items from burglaries conducted across multiple states and perpetuating the sale of the stolen items, Nexstar’s WPIX reported.
Phone records and video surveillance connect Nezhinskiy to members of a crew suspected of burglarizing the home of a high-profile athlete in Ohio on Dec. 9, 2024. That’s the same day Burrow’s home was reportedly broken into while he and the Bengals were playing in Dallas.
Court documents do not explicitly identify Burrow as a victim of the thefts, but authorities referenced previous news coverage of four men being arrested in connection to that burglary.
