A burglar entered Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley's Tredyffrin Township home around 5:10 a.m. on Saturday, July 19, while his family was inside, according to Capt. Tyler Moyer of the Tredyffrin Township Police Department. The suspects fled before officers arrived, and no one was injured.
The incident occurred in the Malvern section of Tredyffrin Township in Chester County, not in Lower Merion. But investigators are now examining whether it fits a pattern of organized burglaries targeting professional athletes nationwide, the same type of sophisticated crime ring Lower Merion police have tracked across the Main Line this summer.
Moyer said the family was "obviously a little unsettled as anybody would be, but nobody was harmed."
Investigators believe at least two suspects were involved. Tredyffrin police released a photo of a white SUV believed to be connected to the case and said additional vehicles may have been present. Authorities believe nothing was taken, though that had not been fully confirmed as of July 20.
"We will look at all angles of this because we know, obviously, it's been all over the news in the past few years about different professional athletes' homes getting burglarized," Moyer told NBC10.
Chester County detectives and federal partners are assisting the investigation. Tredyffrin police said they had not received reports of similar break-ins in their township before the Barkley incident.
Lower Merion's SATG pattern
The Barkley break-in comes weeks after Lower Merion police issued their own warnings about organized residential burglaries.
On June 17, Lower Merion officers discovered a hidden surveillance camera concealed in rocks along the 900 block of Stony Lane in Ardmore after receiving a tip from the NYPD. Police linked the device to the South American Theft Group, a crime ring connected to dozens of Main Line burglaries in recent years.
"This group moves in, they're highly trained, usually in and out of a house within five minutes," Lower Merion Police Chief Andrew Block said on June 17, when the camera was found.
On July 9, Lower Merion police warned residents of a fresh string of home burglaries in Bryn Mawr and Wynnewood, with investigators believing some were connected to a South American theft organization. Lt. Michael Keenan of the Lower Merion Township Police Department urged residents to secure their homes during summer travel season.
Nationally, federal prosecutors charged seven men in connection with burglaries at the homes of NFL players Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce and Joe Burrow, and NBA forward Bobby Portis. One defendant was sentenced to 24 months in prison in June. In May, Argentine police arrested two Chilean citizens suspected of being part of a transnational gang that targeted athletes in the U.S. and Argentina.
No arrests have been announced in the Barkley case. No law enforcement agency has confirmed a link between the Barkley break-in and the Lower Merion SATG cases.
Lower Merion police offer a free Vacant House Program, where officers check on homes while residents are out of town, and free home security assessments. Anyone with information about the Barkley break-in can contact Tredyffrin Township Police Det. Sgt. Stephanie Bills at [email protected].
