Seven men have been charged in connection with a nationwide spree of burglaries that victimized high-profile athletes, including Travis Kelce and Patrick Mahomes, federal officials said Tuesday.
The charge of conspiracy to commit interstate transportation of stolen property for each of the seven is in a criminal complaint filed Jan. 30 but announced by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Florida on Tuesday.
The complaint adds four defendants to three previously alleged to be connected to such burglaries nationwide: Jordan Quiroga Sanchez, 22; Bastian Orellano Morales, 23; and Sergio Ortega Cabello, 38.
The four other defendants are Pablo Zuniga Cartes, 24; Ignacio Zuniga Cartes, 20; Alexander Huiaguil Chavez, 24; and Bastian Jimenez Freraut, 27.
It's not clear if any of the defendants have obtained lawyers. The federal public defender in Tampa, Florida, where the case was filed, did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday night.
Four of the defendants — Cabello, Chavez, Morales and Sanchez — pleaded not guilty to initial charges in Ohio of participating in a criminal gang, engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity, obstructing official business and possession of criminal tools, according to court records.
In its statement, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida alleged the seven were part of a South American burglary crew that victimized high-profile athletes across the nation. All the defendants are from Chile.
If convicted, each could spend as much as 10 years in federal prison, prosecutors said.
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Florida said the defendants were connected to burglaries that resulted in the theft of $2 million in goods.
Without specifically identifying the victims, the office used language that indicated the early October burglaries at the homes of Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce and quarterback Patrick Mahomes were part of the spree, saying that the Kansas City-area residences of two Chiefs players were burglarized Oct. 5 and Oct. 7.
Additionally, according to the statement, the seven are also connected to the Nov. 2, 2024, break-in at the Wisconsin home of a Milwaukee Bucks player while he was at work at a game. Watches, chains, jewelry, a designer suitcase, designer bags, cash and a safe securing some of those items, together worth nearly $1.5 million, were stolen, the office said.
The information corresponds to a burglary at the home of Bucks forward Bobby Portis Jr.
Pablo Zuniga Cartes, Ignacio Zuniga Cartes, Freraut and a fourth person not named posed for a photo with the safe and some of the goods afterward, the office alleged in its statement.
The office alleged another burglary, a Dec. 9 Cincinnati area break-in, victimized a Cincinnati Bengals player, taking an estimated $300,000 in goods, the office said in its statement. The information corresponds to the burglary of the residence of Joe Burrow, who was in Arlington, Texas, helping his team beat the Dallas Cowboys 27-20 at the time.
The U.S. Attorney's Office alleged defendant Cabello rented the vehicle used in the Ohio burglary.
Also victimized were a Memphis Grizzlies basketball player whose home was breached Dec. 20 while he played a home game and the Oct. 21 break-in at the home of a Tampa Bay Buccaneers player.
According to the filing, suspects gained entry to the home of the Buccaneers player by breaking through a window, stealing jewelry, Rolex watches, a Louis Vuitton suitcase and a firearm worth more than $167,000.
In that case and that of the Grizzlies player, identities of the victims have not been made public.
