Kansas City Chiefs stars Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce received good news after their Super Bowl LIX loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.
Seven men from Chile were arrested and charged in connection with the burglaries of Mahomes and Kelce’s homes.
The defendants were identified as Pablo Zuniga Cartes, 24, Ignacio Zuniga Cartes, 20, Bastian Jimenez Freraut, 27, Jordan Quiroga Sanchez, 22, Bastian Orellano Morales, 23, Alexander Huiaguil Chavez, 24, and Sergio Ortega Cabello, 38.
The South American theft group was also linked to the other home burglaries of high-profile NFL and NBA athletes, including Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow and Milwaukee Bucks forward Bobby Portis, per ESPN.
According to ABC News, they were charged with conspiracy to commit interstate transportation of stolen property and could face a maximum of 10 years in prison if convicted.
The FBI tracked the seven men by their selfies bragging about their loot uploaded to a secure Apple iCloud account, which they were able to access through a search warrant, ESPN reported.
In one of the photos obtained by the FBI, Cartes was wearing a Chiefs shirt while posing with his cohorts showing off the stolen luxury watches and safety deposit shortly after the November burglary of Portis’ home.
NFL, NBA Stars Targeted
On Oct. 5 and 7, the homes of Kelce and Mahomes were burglarized. The Chiefs beat the New Orleans Saints on Oct. 7.
“Obviously, it’s frustrating, disappointing,” Mahomes said in a press conference after the incident.
Three weeks later, a home of an unidentified Tampa Bay Buccaneers player was also burglarized during a game on Oct. 21. The South American theft group targeted Portis’ home on Nov. 2.
On Dec. 9, Burrow’s home was reported burglarized. Between Dec. 19-20, a home of an unidentified Memphis Grizzlis player was also burglarized during a game.
On Feb. 5, Sanchez, Morales and Cabello were indicted in Ohio for burglarizing Burrow’s home in Anderson Township in December 2024. The three Chilean were identified in a photo taken from the cellphone of one of the suspects which showed multiple luxury items stolen from Burrow’s home.
The photo taken on Dec. 10, a day after Burrow’s home was burglarized, showed the suspects posing with some of the stolen items.
A photo obtained by ABC News from the Department of Justice also showed multiple items — including wristwatches, jewelry and $10,000 in cash — stolen from the Bengals star quarterback.
Traffic Stop Led to Arrest
In late January, the three Chileans were apprehended due to a traffic violation in Ohio. A fourth man was also in the car but was not charged. The three suspects showed fake identification cards to the authorities.
One of the suspects was seen wearing a Bengals beanie. An LSU shirt believed to have been stolen from Burrow, along with two Husky automatic center punch tools, which authorities said “are used to break glass and enter houses to break glass,” were also found in their car rental’s trunk.
Stolen Items Sold in NYC Pawnshop
The authorities found some of the stolen items in a pawnshop in New York City at West 47th.
Dimitriy Nezhinskiy, the pawnshop owner and his employee, Juan Villar, were also charged with conspiracy and receipt of stolen property in connection with the South American theft group’s activities.
They have pleaded not guilty.
Nezhinskiy was linked to at least two members of the Burrow home burglary crew by phone records and video surveillance, according to court filings obtained by ABC News. They are believed to be in possession of around $5 million in stolen property, including wine, art, jewelry, watches, handbags and sports memorabilia.
“They have created a marketplace that promotes residential burglaries of homes across the United States,” prosecutor Michael Maffei said in court, per ABC News.
