A recent string of home burglaries that have impacted high-profile athletes like Kansas City Chief stars Travis Kelce and Patrick Mahomes, may be connected to a South American crime ring, multiple sources told ABC News and Fox 4 Kansas City.
“Multiple law enforcement sources familiar with the investigations” told ABC News on Wednesday, Nov. 20 that the break-ins are possibly part of an international scheme. The sources say this is just “one avenue” investigators are looking into.
“You don’t want to discount a local person,” one of the sources said, before adding that “it’s very easy to find out” where players like Kelce, 35, and Mahomes, 29, are on Sundays.
The tight end and quarterback were burglarized within 48 hours of each other in early October.
Mahomes’ eight-acre Belton, Mo. estate was broken into on Oct. 6. Leawood. Mo. police said $20,000 was taken from Kelce’s residence on Oct. 7. That weekend, the Chiefs were in New Orleans playing the Saints.
Milwaukee Bucks forward Bobby Portis’ home in River Hills, Wis. was also burglarized similarly per ABC News.
The NBA pro, 29, announced in a video posted on his Instagram and X accounts that he was playing a game against the Cleveland Cavaliers when most of his “prized possessions” were stolen from his residence during a home invasion on Nov. 2.
“This is a sophisticated operation, it’s not some guy that’s going down to the local pawn shop,” Mike Barbieri, a security expert whose experience includes working alongside federal agents and working security detail in nearly two dozen countries, told Fox 4 Kansas City.
Barbieri added, “If you have a particular individual that’s an athlete, a wealthy CEO, you can find out just about anything you need to find out about these people online.”
As far as the possibility of the robberies being connected to a South American crime ring, the security expert added, “Anybody that’s had their home worked on recently and then miraculously had it burglarized, you can draw a very interesting conclusion from that. Some of the people that were on the jobsite may know people in these cartels and may be selling the information.”
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PEOPLE reached out to the Leawood Police Department for comment, but did not immediately hear back.
The department told ABC News and FOX 4: “Leawood Police Department will not comment on any open investigations. Our agency follows up on all investigative leads and works closely with victims to solve open cases. The Leawood Police Department is dedicated to the public we serve and will work tirelessly to ensure the City of Leawood remains one of the safest cities in the State of Kansas.”
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