Crime Weekly - S3 Ep274: Crime Weekly News: Burglars Break Into NFL Quarterback's Home

Episode Date: February 12, 2025

On December 9, 2024, while Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow was in Dallas for a game against the Cowboys, his Anderson Township home was burglarized. Investigations led to the arrest of four Chilean nationals, believed to be part of a South American Theft Group targeting high-profile athletes. The suspects were found with stolen items, including Burrow's signature jewelry, and faced federal charges for transporting stolen goods and falsifying records. We're coming to CrimeCon Denver! Use our code CRIMEWEEKLY for 10% off your tickets! https://www.crimecon.com/CC25 Try our coffee!! - www.CriminalCoffeeCo.com Become a Patreon member -- > https://www.patreon.com/CrimeWeekly Shop for your Crime Weekly gear here --> https://crimeweeklypodcast.com/shop Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/CrimeWeeklyPodcast Website: CrimeWeeklyPodcast.com Instagram: @CrimeWeeklyPod Twitter: @CrimeWeeklyPod Facebook: @CrimeWeeklyPod

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Wayfair has got style tips for every home. This is Nicole Byer, helping you make those rooms flyer. Today's style tip, when it comes to making a statement, treat bold patterns like neutrals. Go wild! Bye. Hey everyone, welcome back to Crime Weekly News. I'm Derek Levasseur. And I'm Stephanie Harlow. There was an interesting article that recently came out. I was reading it with the NPR where I don't know how many people are sports fans out there, but we just had the Super Bowl. Congratulations to the Philadelphia Eagles. Before we even came on today, Stephanie was blasting Kendrick Lamar as I walked in here. So clearly you watched the Super Bowl, right, Stephanie?

I did, yes. Okay, so I think everybody was enjoying the Super Bowl, whether you're a Chiefs fan or an Eagles fan. I did turn it off after the halftime show because by that time game was over. Yeah. The Chiefs hadn't scored at all. Yeah. And the Eagles had like 23 points or something. And I was like, I don't see. It was a shocker. I think obviously Chiefs were the favorites. They were going for a three-peat and unfortunately they didn't get it done, but I have a feeling they will be back. although the Eagles just looked phenomenal. But that's not why we're here today, as you can tell from the thumbnail. We're going to talk about the crime that's occurring with some

of these athletes. Some of you may have heard a couple months ago, December 9th, 2024, Joe Burrow, who's the quarterback for the Cincinnati Bengals, he was playing a game against the Dallas Cowboys in Texas when over $300,000 worth of jewelry, designer luggage, and other items were taken from his home. Now, if you're following like the entertainment news, the big story with this that a lot of people were covering initially was that this model was staying at his house and she basically called in the fact that she heard someone in his house while she was house sitting and everyone was kind of up in arms about it because I apparently I don't even know the backstory but apparently Joe Burrow has a longtime girlfriend this woman was not his girlfriend so that's why everyone was covering it but listen we're not here to talk about it because I don't

know what his situation is maybe his girlfriend knew knew about it. Maybe this is just a friend. Really didn't matter to me. What was important is that this wasn't the first burglary of a high-profile athlete while they were outside of the state playing a football game. So it appeared to be calculated. It appeared to be premeditated. And it also happened to Travis Kelsey. It happened to Luka Doncic, who was a professional athlete, a superstar, was the Dallas Mavericks, now the Los Angeles Lakers. That's a whole different story. And apparently, as this is all unfolding, there's a lot more to this story because not only did they catch the guys involved with Joe Burrow's case, but the FBI is uncovering that this is a much bigger entity performing these burglaries and it's a lot more sophisticated than you might think. Yeah. So it says that the

investigation began on December 9 when an associate of Burroughs reported an apparent burglary after he arrived at the residence and discovered rooms were unusually messy and a primary bedroom window on the backside of the home had been broken. This was according to a charging document cited by the attorney's office. Obviously, Burrow was in the Dallas, Texas area for the NFL game. And if you think about it, you really only need two things because these are public figures. And so their schedules, especially when they're playing games, are pretty obvious. You know he's on this team. He's on the Bengals.

You know the Bengals are playing Dallas and that it's a home game in Texas. So you know he's not going to be home. So from there, all you got to do is figure out where he lives, which isn't the easiest thing but can be done if you need to. So investigators said they found trail camera footage of a person carrying luggage through the wooded area near Burroughs residence before the suspects were tracked across several states. They were eventually detained at a hotel in Fairborn, Ohio, where the Ohio Highway Patrol stopped them for a traffic violation. Investigators, they ended up

arresting three individuals. It looks like they are all from Chile. And they seem to be the alleged tip of the iceberg of South American theft groups committing crimes throughout our district and elsewhere, according to U.S. Attorney Kenneth L. Parker. So authorities charged Jordan Francisco Cuiergo Sanchez, who's 22, Bastian Alejandro Orliana Morales, 23, and Sergio Andres Ortego Cabello, 38, with transporting stolen goods interstate and falsifying records, according once again to the U.S. Attorney's Office in the Southern District of Ohio. put a stop to and they found out that these three guys who had broken into burrows home they took selfies of themselves posing like with his signature jewelry on you know because he's got a lot of money what do i always say right if criminals were smart we wouldn't catch him yeah well i mean they probably thought they weren't going to be caught because you know

they were gonna they were gonna come into the, do what they needed to do, and then get out before anybody figured it out. But obviously, that's not what happened, not at least in this case. Although, as you mentioned, there's been other robberies where people haven't been caught, right? And it's not just athletes. It's also just high-profile people who are in the news or on social media that are putting out where they are, where they're currently visiting, where out where they are, where they're currently visiting, where they're traveling to, where they're working as a form of marketing. And these groups are taking advantage of that. That's why, you know, when we bring it down to the, you know, the normal level and not the professional athlete level, I am pretty conscious about not

posting where I am at that exact moment for a variety of reasons. One, you know, you never know who has a problem with you. They could show up or it also lets them know that you're not home. So I would advise everyone just on that note to when you're posting on social, you know, save the photo posted a day or two later. And that way people can't start to get a beat on what you're doing and the practices that you kind of carry out throughout the week where you develop a pattern and they can expose that. This podcast is sponsored by IQ Bar. I've got good news and bad news. Here's the bad news. Most protein bars are packed with sugar and unpronounceable ingredients. The good news, there's a better option. I'm Will and I created IQ Bar plant protein bars to empower doers like you with clean,

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Refuel smarter, hydrate harder, caffeinate larger with IQ Bar. Go to eatiqbar.com and enter code BAR20 to get 20% off all IQ Bar products, plus free shipping. Again, go to eat IQ bar.com and enter code bar 20. Yeah. And I mean, with this, it goes even deeper because it wasn't just these Chilean men. They have, I guess, associates kind of positioned all around because federal

prosecutors in New York City actually raided a fence pawn shop in Manhattan, and they have alleged in court documents that this pawn shop regularly served as fences for South American theft groups who engage in crime tourism. And one of the men, Dmitry Nizhinsky, he was linked to at least two of the men arrested in Ohio by phone records and video surveillance. And the documents allege that Nizhinsky also had contact with one of the Ohio suspects less than a week before Burroughs' house was broken into. And so Nizinsky and another suspect, Juan Villar, each now face one federal count of conspiracy to receive stolen property and three counts of receipt of stolen property. Now they searched Nizinsky's storage units and

they found, quote, large quantities of luxury goods and clothing, including high-end handbags, wine, sports memorabilia, jewelry, and art, end quote. And they said the units also held power tools commonly used in burglaries and opening safes. And they also alleged that witnesses said Nizinsky and Villar coached them to steal items away from New York so it would be easier for the defendants to resell the items and harder for law enforcement to track. Nizinsky is a Georgian national. He's been subject to a final order of removal from the U.S. since 2003. However, Nizinsky remains in the United States as he cannot be returned to his home country, according to NPR. Now, I will say a lot of people might be like, oh, who cares? They're just stealing stuff. These people probably have insurance on these items. And if they don't, they should. Yes, that's absolutely true.

You might believe that burglary of wealthy people is a victimless crime. But when these guys went into Burroughs' house, he's got his quote-unquote model friend staying there. What happened if she wandered into the room? What could have happened then? Will these people just stop at, you know, like what I'm saying is if you're willing to cross a boundary to break into somebody's house, steal their personal items, take pictures, posing with their personal items, what else are you capable of? Are you going to want this woman to potentially be able to identify you, to call the police, et cetera, et cetera? Or is it going to turn violent? So yeah,

I guess you could say it's a victimless crime if they're just getting in and out with these items. But there might be people staying at these houses. I mean, these are mansions. They got like 11, 12 rooms. You don't know who's there. You don't know who could wander in. Maybe they have kids. You don't know. And so there is the potential for things to turn violent because they have such a high stakes of getting these items, getting them fenced at these New York City pawn shops and things like that. There's money on the line. And honestly, I don't think it's a crazy leap to think that it could turn violent. Of course. Absolutely. And it could be a really dangerous situation. I know a lot of these professional athletes are now bulking up their security. They have people's house sitting. But you're right. It could turn violent. And if these individuals are put into a corner, if they do have weapons on them or something, like you said, someone can, it could be worse than just some jewelry getting stolen. And, and this doesn't

only apply to professional athletes. I think everybody out there, listen, we have people from all walks of life who listen or watch our podcast. So there's probably some people out there who have large homes and maybe have some expensive stuff inside. So you have to be aware of this as well. And one of the things that the FBI pointed out that I thought was interesting is when they're looking at the patterns for these individuals and what type of locations they're choosing, they're obviously targeting high-end houses, but they also noted that these houses usually back up against green spaces, walking trails, golf courses, or other undeveloped land because it's easy to get in and get out and they usually will enter through a rear window or a glass door preferably on the second floor and I

was I was trying to think about why that would be I guess it could be a couple reasons one would be the alarm systems are just activated on the first floor maybe not on the second or maybe they figure the bedrooms are on the second floor so it, it's quicker access to the more valuable items. And then also what they're stealing is important. They're focusing on jewelry, designer bags, things of that nature. Why? Because when they go to these pawn shops or these fencing operations, it's easier to transfer those items without there being some type of tracking to it. Pawn shops are supposed to take in jewelry items. They're supposed to note where they're getting them from, who they're getting them from, and they're supposed to hold onto them. I don't know, 30 to 60 days. Some of my pawn shop people out there

will correct me before they do anything with it. That way, if it's reported stolen, law enforcement agencies can go to these pawn shops and say, Hey, have you taken in an item that matches this description? Yes, I have. Here it is. Who sold it to you? But what's happening, especially if it's a fencing operation and they're conducting a legal activity, they're taking it in, they're shipping it out of the country, or they're melting it down. So really, there's no way of tracking it down at that point. So that's why they're focusing on the jewelry, because it's easy to take that and turn it into cash. Oh, absolutely. But the problem with this is it is so noticeable, right? Because Burroughs has an Instagram, he's got social

media, he's wearing these items. These are notable pieces, which I think is stupid because somebody going into that pawn shop in New York is going to be like, hey, isn't that Joe Burroughs' necklace? And then call it in. It's just dumb in general. It says Burrow on it. No, that's not his. I know, right? But there might be somebody, maybe with those more high profile items, they know certain collectors or certain sketchy people who they don't put those on the floor, right? They call these people directly and they're like, hey, I got a deal for you. I got something special. Exactly. you with clean, delicious, low-sugar brain and body fuel. IQ Bars are packed with 12 grams of protein, brain nutrients like magnesium and lion's mane, and zero weird stuff. And right now, you can

get 20% off all IQ Bar products, plus free shipping. Try our delicious IQ Bar sampler pack with seven plant protein bars, four hydration mixes, and four enhanced coffee sticks. Clean ingredients, amazing taste, and you'll love how you feel. Refuel smarter, hydrate harder, caffeinate larger with IQ Bar. Go to eatiqbar.com and enter code BAR20 to get 20% off all IQ Bar products, plus free shipping. Again, go to eatiqbar.com and enter code BAR20. Yeah, no, you're right. And it's happening every day. It's not going to stop.

All we can do, and we don't have it in Crime Weekly News, but we have a Simply Safe ad in the Crime Weekly episode this week. And that's what it really comes down to, just being careful online, being cognizant of what you're posting, and taking the precautionary measures that you can to better protect yourself. And an alarm system is a great one. If you have an alarm system, make sure that you spend the extra bucks and have the sensors put in on the first floor windows and on the second floor windows make sure that when you leave your residence you activate that alarm system that is something that i used to be very guilty of i'd have

the system but would forget to activate it on my way out the door. Now I make it a part of my routine. And then to make sure that it's always operational, check it once in a while, activate it, open a window, see if it triggers it, do it, do a test, do a, you know, I guess, uh, I guess we'd call a false alarm every couple of months. Like you'd see at a school or a business to make sure God forbid, if it needs to be utilized, hopefully if you're not at the home, you will be notified so that you don't return to the home and find yourself in a situation like Stephanie described, where now you're face to face with these offenders.

They feel like they're in a corner and they do something drastic. We don't want that. Your items can be replaced. You cannot. So you want to take the measures that you can to try to prevent it from happening and maybe put some deterrents out there. If you can afford it, get us some high fencing, especially if you're up against a wooded area. I've kind of gave you guys the trick, which I think works.

And I don't even care if the burglars hear it because they wouldn't know the difference. Even if you don't have an alarm system, you can't afford it. Get a sign. Post them everywhere. And by the way, if you're going to post a sign, don't post a sign for the actual alarm that you have installed in your house. Throw them off. Again, that's like a dollar. Anyone can get those. They sell them online. Take these little measures. I hope you never need it, but it may come into play even without you knowing it. A group of people could

be casing the area and because of the measures you took, they chose not to go to your house. So it could be working without you even knowing it. And what do you really have to lose? Nothing, but you do have a lot to gain your life. Yeah, absolutely. Or, you know, the safety of your family, because even if you're not home, they could be. That's right. That's right. So these people, I think they're there for the jewelry. I don't think they're going in there with the intent on hurting anybody. It's supposed to be a quick smash and grab, but it's going to happen at some point. I'm just saying, if they are willing to cross boundaries to do that, it shows, honestly, a low moral compass. So I wouldn't trust it.

No, not at all. I wouldn't want to take that chance. We'll keep following it. Obviously, this is going to come to a head because there's a lot of professional athletes that have already come out and said, yeah, I've hired a whole security team and they've put it out there overtly. They come to my house, they're not leaving. So somebody is going to end up dead. This is going to get worse before it gets better. So. Yeah. Don't be breaking into people's houses, man. Like period. Right. I am hoping that with these offenders going down, the FBI seems to have a pretty good beat on

what's going on and they can start to be proactive in their approach, start flipping people. And maybe it'll serve somewhat as a deterrent for these organizations to maybe say, Hey, let's cool it for a little bit because things are hot right now. That's the hope. Yeah. Usually I feel like once they get the spotlight on them, people are talking about them. They kind of switch gears. So we'll see if that happens. We will. Anything else that you want to cover before we go? I know we got a couple of things coming up. Thank you to everyone who went and used the code for CrimeCon. We had a lot of people sign up. A lot of people reached out in my DMs asking me if we were going to do like a meet and greet. The thing about

CrimeCon is it kind of is a meet and greet. It's the whole thing. We're sitting at our booth all day. We're serving coffee. We're selling t-shirts and mugs and sweatshirts. And we're just, me and Stephanie are just kind of sitting there, hanging out, taking photos, talking with you guys all day. And we're there for like three days straight. Then at night we're out again and we're walking around. Everyone's just kind of mingling. So it is a meet and greet and it's probably the one meet and greet we do a year. So hopefully that answers those questions.

Also, it's coming up and it probably will hit either by the time this episode comes out or definitely by the time Crime Weekly comes out. We're about to hit 300,000 subscribers on YouTube and we could not thank you guys enough. We understand that it's not guaranteed that these channels are going to continue to grow. People can unsubscribe or subscribe anytime they like. And so the fact that we're still growing four years later, it means a lot to us and we wouldn't be here without you. Yes, we love you guys. We

appreciate you every day, every minute. Okay. With that out of the way, that's going to do it for us. Everyone stay safe out there. We will see you later this week with part four of Ray Rivera. It's going to be the final part and on YouTube on Sunday. Until then, everyone stay safe out there. See you soon. Bye.