OAN Staff Brooke Mallory
9:56 AM – Tuesday, December 31, 2024
U.S. sports teams have received a formal warning from the FBI on organized crime groups that prey on professional athletes.
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The warning comes after professional athletes’ residences were broken into while they were traveling or out playing games, starting in September.
“These homes are targeted for burglary due to the perception they may have high-end goods like designer handbags, jewelry, watches, and cash,” the FBI said in a Liaison Report.
The report continued, explaining that “organized theft groups allegedly burglarized the homes of at least nine professional athletes” between the time frame of September and November in 2024.
“While many burglaries occur while homes are unoccupied, some burglaries occur while residents are home. In these instances, individuals are encouraged to seek law enforcement help and avoid engaging with criminals, as they may be armed or use violence if confronted,” the report noted.
The residences of Kansas City Chiefs players Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce, Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, and, most recently, Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Dončić have been the targets of a series of robberies. Additionally, there have been break-ins at the residences of NBA guards Bobby Portis and Mike Conley Jr.
However, none of these occurrences are mentioned in the FBI report.
The FBI claims that South American organized crime organizations prepare for these break-ins by conducting technical and physical surveillance, utilizing social media and publicly accessible data to determine a potential victim’s lifestyle patterns. They also frequently know ahead of time where a home’s valuables are kept, the FBI added.
“These preparation tactics enable theft groups to conduct burglaries in a short amount of time. 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 report continued.
The FBI recommended that athletes keep track of their valuables, inventorying items and their locations; implement extra security; and exercise caution on social media, including avoiding posting images of valuables, the interior of one’s home, and real-time posts while on vacation. The FBI also encouraged athletes to report suspicious activity more frequently.
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