Bobby Portis home burglary, Chilean nationals charged
Chilean nationals federally charged in Bobby Portis home burglary
Federal prosecutors in Florida charged seven Chilean nationals on Tuesday with burglarizing high-profile pro athletes' homes, including the River Hills home of Milwaukee Bucks star Bobby Portis in November.
RIVER HILLS, Wis. - Federal prosecutors in Florida charged seven Chilean nationals on Tuesday with burglarizing high-profile pro athletes' homes. That includes the River Hills home of Milwaukee Bucks star Bobby Portis in November.
Bobby Portis reacts
What they're saying:
The group is accused of stealing nearly $1.5 million in jewelry, cash and designer bags. Four of the men posed for a selfie with watches, jewelry and a mangled safe.
"It's kind of gratifying that these guys have been caught," Portis said. "Obviously, you work so hard for your things."
WATCH: River Hills police video of burglary at Bobby Portis' home
Bobby Portis home burglary, championship ring among items stolen
Bobby Portis' 2021 NBA championship ring was among the items stolen from his home last year, according to River Hills Police Department records.
The photo shows Pablo Zuniga Cartes, Ignacio Zuniga Cartes, Bastian Jimenez Freraut and an unknown fourth man. That photo, federal prosecutors said, is proof of part of the haul from Portis' home.
"Crazy that the picture – I'm not going to say anything about it," said Portis. "It works me up."
How were they caught?
Dig deeper:
The crimes spanned from early October to mid-December. In addition to Portis' home in River Hills, they targeted the homes of players for the Kansas City Chiefs, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Cincinnati Bengals and Memphis Grizzlies.
The athletes' homes were targeted while the players were at games. The thieves broke in and stole valuable items. In total, prosecutors said the men stole nearly $5 million worth of stuff.
Portis home burglary; how men were caught
Federal prosecutors charged Chilean nationals with burglarizing pro athletes' homes. That includes the River Hills home of Bucks star Bobby Portis.
"They got caught by making common mistakes known to cybersecurity experts," said Alex Holden, chief information security officer with Hold Security.
Federal investigators used cellphone towers, phone records and other technology – like geo-tags and timestamps on deleted photos – to catch the suspects.
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Last month, law enforcement officers arrested four of the men in Ohio during a traffic stop, during which they found fake IDs and burglary tools.
"They were able to identify them by triangulating their cellphone signal to their physical location during the time of the crime," said Holden.
Chilean nationals federally charged with burglarizing Bobby Portis' home
The men accused used "throw phones" that are hard to track, only using the devices for a few weeks at a time before dumping them. Investigators were still able to use towers and records to pinpoint locations.
"This needs to be done through a legal process, so usually when law enforcement identifies things of interest, they reach out to cellphone providers, to different cell tower operators, and they get proper warrants," said Holden.
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Specifically, the use of unique international mobile subscriber identifier numbers helped investigators connect the dots that led to the arrests.
"Finding the right connections is kept, so this was a very good investigation," Holden said.
What's next:
It's unlikely federal or state charges will be filed in Wisconsin in connection to the investigation. The River Hills Police Department said the burglary case will be prosecuted out of Florida. Four of the men also face state charges in Ohio.
The Source: Information in this report is from the River Hills Police Department, U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida, and prior FOX6 News coverage.