LOS ANGELES, Aug 13 — Los Angeles police arrested this week four teenagers suspected to be part of a street gang that ransacked the home of Hollywood A-list actor Brad Pitt back in June.
The all male suspects – two aged 18, one 17 and one 16 – are alleged street gang members linked to a string of “celebrity burglaries” targeting actors and professional athletes, BBC reported today.
Investigators found stolen property during searches of the suspects’ homes, the British news agency reported, citing LA police chief Jim McDonnell.
He did not name the other celebrities targeted, but according to the BBC, Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban, LA Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto and former LA Football Club striker Olivier Giroud were among high-profile LA residents who have reported burglaries this year.
The break-in at Pitt’s Los Feliz property happened on June 25 when three masked thieves jumped a fence, smashed a window and entered before fleeing with valuables, according to media reports.
AP reported that Pitt was overseas promoting his new film F1 at the time of the burglary, and his representatives have declined to comment.
McDonnell said that burglars had become more sophisticated, using hidden surveillance cameras and wi-fi jammers to bypass home security systems, BBC reported.
“We don’t really give enough thought to… [while] we want our friends to know where we are and what we’re doing, you’re telling everybody else then who may be looking to exploit your situation,” he was quoted as saying by the BBC.
