MEQUON, WI- In a nationwide trend catching the eye of law enforcement, several high-end residential burglaries suggest a transnational professional operation targeting wealthy homeowners, Fox News Digital reports.
According to the Mequon Police Department, the burglaries involve suspects dressed entirely in black, wearing gloves and face-coverings.
The suspects have entered homes through wooded back yards and often target cul-de-sacs or properties abutting golf courses.
The thieves target high-value items, including jewelry, designer handbags, watches, and cash, consistent with organized crime groups targeting affluent neighborhoods nationwide.
The agency hosted a regional intelligence-sharing meeting earlier in November, bringing together police agencies from across the southeastern portion of Wisconsin to share intelligence and identify trends.
Fox News said investigators are working with the Wisconsin Department of Justice and the state crime lab to process evidence and cross-reference incidents across various jurisdictions.
Officials believe the burglaries bear a stark resemblance to South American theft groups (SATGs), which are known to be operating across the U.S. No suspects have been identified yet, however.
Mequon Police Operations Commander John Hoell told Fox News Digital that entry methods and targeting are consistent across multiple cases.
“The way the residences were entered, the way the actors were dressed–head to toe in black, just the eyes showing, gloves on, and what they targeted inside–jewelry, handbags, cash–it all matches togethe", Hoell said.
He noted that the pattern doesn’t match with typical local burglaries, enforcing the belief that the crimes involve a well-coordinated group operating regionally, or perhaps nationally.
There have been several burglaries involving high-profile athletes over the past several years, including Kansas City Chiefs stars Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce, and Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow. In Wisconsin, Milwaukee Bucks player Bobby Portis had his home burglarized in 2023.
In the latter case, about $1,500 in items were stolen, and that burglary was linked to a Chilean theft group later charged in connection with the Mahomes, Kelce, and Burrows burglaries.
Police say suspects often enter backyards during the evening hours, Thursday through Sunday, focusing on unoccupied homes. It is believed the burglars may use trail cameras or similar monitoring devices to watch when residents leave their homes.
Police said that audible alarms and surveillance systems have successfully deterred many such attempts.
The burglaries have become political fodder in the Wisconsin governor’s race.
Republican Rep. Tom Tiffany, who is running for governor, pointed out that a lack of border enforcement by the Biden administration has emboldened transnational gangs to target American citizens.
“This is what Democrats invited into our country under the last four years of Joe Biden, and not one Democrat running for governor will condemn it or demand these criminals be removed,” Tiffany told Fox News Digital in a statement.
“I have spent years on the House Judiciary Committee fighting for stronger border security, including ending catch-and-release, stopping parole abuse, and dismantling foreign criminal networks, and I’m grateful that we finally have a president taking this crisis seriously and federal agencies working overtime to get criminals off our streets,” he said.
Tiffany said that if elected governor, he will ban sanctuary jurisdictions and increase resources for local law enforcement agencies.
“I’m confident that local and federal law enforcement will move quickly to shut down this South American crime ring,” Tiffany added.
While law enforcement officials have yet to confirm a link between the burglaries and suspects’ immigration status, they note that South American theft groups involve those who enter the country legally on short-term visas and then bail out after committing coordinated crimes.
Police pointed out that the Mequon-area burglaries remain under active investigation.
Hoell said the department is “confident” they will catch the burglars, “but it’s going to take time and help from everyone watching.”
Police highlighted that community awareness and immediate reporting are the most effective tools for preventing further incidents.
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