Four Chilean men in the country illegally were linked this month to the break-in at NFL quarterback Joe Burrow’s home in Anderson Township, Ohio, after police said they pulled over the suspected thieves and found the star’s memorabilia in their car.
Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost said the men — Jordan Francisco Sanchez, 22; Alexander Esteban Huaiquil-Chavez, 24; Bastian Alejandro Morales, 23; and Sergio Andres Cabello, 38 — were indicted Tuesday after they were accused of “carrying out a string of burglaries targeting multimillion-dollar homes.”
Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers arrested the men following a Jan. 10 traffic stop, according to a police affidavit filed in Clark County.
The affidavit said the Chileans told police they were in Ohio to see the snow. Mr. Sanchez, the driver, as well as Mr. Morales and Mr. Cabello gave police fake IDs. Mr. Chavez gave police a legitimate New York driver’s license.
Troopers searched the men’s car, the affidavit said, and found burglary tools and an “old LSU shirt and Bengals hat, believed to be stolen” during the December break-in at Mr. Burrow’s home in Hamilton County.
Mr. Burrow, the quarterback for the Cincinnati Bengals, had his home burglarized Dec. 9 while he was in Dallas playing against the Cowboys.
The 28-year-old athlete played his college ball for the LSU Tigers, winning the Heisman Trophy in 2019.
“We live a public life, and one of my least favorite parts of that is the lack of privacy, and that has been difficult to deal with my entire career,” Mr. Burrow said after the break-in at his home. “I’m still learning, but I understand it’s the life that we choose. It doesn’t make it any easier to deal with.”
Federal authorities said professional athletes are a favored target of South American theft groups that abuse a friendly visa system to temporarily enter the country so they can ransack ritzy homes.
In October, police said Kansas City Chiefs superstars Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce had their homes raided by thieves while the two were out of the house.
A month later, Milwaukee Bucks forward Bobby Portis Jr. said “most of my prized possessions” were stolen from his home during a November break-in. The Bucks had just tipped off against the Cleveland Cavaliers when the heist occurred.
Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic had his home broken into last month, while Cowboys defensive tackle Linval Joseph and Minnesota Timberwolves guard Mike Conley Jr. had their homes burglarized last fall.
“Between September and November 2024, organized theft groups allegedly burglarized the homes of at least nine professional athletes and targeted entry points including glass rear doors, windows and second-story doors,” the FBI said in a bulletin sent to professional sports leagues last month.
Theft groups have also targeted residents in wealthy suburbs around Los Angeles, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.
Prosecutors said the four men connected to Mr. Burrow’s home invasion remain behind bars on charges of engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity, participating in a criminal gang and possessing criminal tools.