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Three Chilean men facing charges on suspicion of breaking into NFL star Joe Burrow’s home two months ago took a selfie with some of the jewelry and items stolen from the quarterback, according to a federal criminal complaint filed last week.

The selfie shows four men – three of whom are charged in the case – posing with some of the jewelry and luxury items stolen from Burrow’s Cincinnati home in December, authorities say in the complaint, including a jeweled necklace reading “JB9” with a Nike swoosh and a diamond necklace with the number “9.” (Burrow wears No. 9 for the NFL’s Cincinnati Bengals.)

Another photo, which like the selfie was found on a suspect’s phone, shows a collection of some of the stolen jewelry and cash laid out on a table, according to the complaint filed by an FBI special agent.

The complaint also details how investigators believe the suspects burglarized the home – despite the presence of a security detail – and explains tactics commonly used in recent break-ins targeting professional athletes.

Jordan Francisco Quiroga Sanchez, 22; Bastian Alejandro Orellana Morales, 23; and Sergio Andres Ortega Cabello, 38, all from Chile, face federal charges of transporting stolen goods interstate and falsifying records, according to the FBI.

Information on their attorneys in the federal case is not available. The three also were indicted by an Ohio grand jury last month in connection with the burglaries of a string of multimillion-dollar homes. CNN has sought comment from their attorneys in the state case.

The federal charges were part of a coordinated FBI operation to investigate burglaries connected to organized theft groups from South America that investigators say have targeted the homes of several pro athletes over the past few months. In October, the homes of Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and tight end Travis Kelce were burglarized, and other burglaries have targeted the NBA’s Luka Doncic, Mike Conley Jr. and Bobby Portis.

“Our investigation remains ongoing as these individuals seem to be the alleged tip of the iceberg of South American Theft Groups committing crimes throughout our district and elsewhere,” Kenneth L. Parker, US attorney for Ohio’s southern district, said in a release last week. “We owe it to the victims, whether they are or are not professional athletes, to follow the evidence into these alleged criminal networks and hold the law-breakers accountable.

“Today is a day that law enforcement scored and spiked the ball,” he added.

Burglars took $300K in items and evaded security, authorities allege

The federal charges stem from a burglary December 9 at the Cincinnati home of “J.B.,” a Bengals player, the complaint says. Burrow’s residence was burglarized that day when he was in Texas to play the Dallas Cowboys for “Monday Night Football,” a sheriff’s office has said. The address in the federal complaint matches the one given by the sheriff’s office.

One of Burrow’s associates went to the home shortly after 8 p.m. and observed a master bedroom window on the back side of the house had been broken, according to the complaint. About $300,000 worth of designer luggage, glasses, watches and jewelry had been stolen, the complaint states.

A security detail was at Burrow’s home at the time, and at about 6 p.m., the security walked around the perimeter of the house and no windows appeared to be broken, the complaint states. After that, the security detail was positioned in the driveway in front of the house.

Investigators say they believe the burglary likely took place between 6 p.m. and about 8:15 p.m. and believe the burglars entered the home from the woods at the back of the house via the master bedroom window, out of sight of the security detail.

A trail camera image with a time stamp of 7:18 p.m. showed a person walking through the woods carrying what appeared to be a piece of luggage, the complaint states.

The modus operandi of the burglary is consistent with others carried out in the United States by South American theft groups, according to the complaint. These groups target high-end houses near undeveloped land that can conceal the approach of the suspects, and the burglars get into the house through a rear window or glass door, the complaint states.

The groups, generally made up of South Americans who enter the country illegally or overstay on visas, target jewelry and designer accessories, the complaint states. They often travel using rented vehicles and carry false IDs and documents, the complaint states.

The investigation and arrest

Investigators were able to connect a vehicle in the area to the break-in, and then connected the vehicle to several suspects, according to authorities.

On January 10, the Ohio State Highway Patrol pulled over four men in a vehicle. Police said they were in the country illegally or overstayed their permission, and a grand jury in Ohio’s Clark County indicted them, accusing them of carrying out a string of burglaries of high-end homes.

The four include the three men charged in the federal case.

According to a criminal affidavit in the state case, a search of the vehicle found “an old (Louisiana State University) shirt and Bengals hat, believed to be stolen” from Burrow’s home. Burrow won the 2019 Heisman trophy and a national championship while attending LSU.

The “JB9” necklace with the Nike swoosh appears identical to one Burrow wore at a news conference in January 2022 after winning the AFC Championship Game. When asked by a reporter whether the jewels were real, Burrow said yes. “I make too much money to have fake ones,” he said.

In addition, detectives stated in their arrest report that police found “two Husky automatic center punch tools wrapped in a cloth towel behind the glove box.” Those tools can be used to break glass and enter homes, according to authorities.

A forensic analysis of Cabello’s phone revealed multiple photos showing items believed to be stolen from Burrow’s home as well as a photo of the back of Burrow’s house. Many of the photos were deleted in the same time frame as the traffic stop last month, according to the federal criminal complaint.

Also last Wednesday, two men were arrested in New York’s Diamond District and accused of conspiring to receive stolen goods in connection to a spate of burglaries, known as a “fencing” operation. Phone records and video surveillance link one of the men to two members of the crew believed to be involved in burglarizing Burrow’s home, federal prosecutors said last week.

The two men, Dimitriy Nezhinskiy and Juan Villar, have pleaded not guilty.