Teen Girls Probed in Lohan, Hilton, Bloom Burglary Cases in L.A.
Seven teenage girls and young women—many of whom knew each other from high school—are being probed in an ongoing investigation of a multimillion-dollar celebrity burglary ring in the Los Angeles area.
Several of the suspects, who currently are 18 and 19, have been arrested but have not been charged in burglaries dating back as much as a year or more, reports the L.A. Now blog of the Los Angeles Times. They are accused of focusing on individuals popularized by the entertainment media and then surfing the Internet to track their movements. Two men in their 20s are suspected of fencing the stolen items.
The alleged victims, who included but aren’t limited to celebrities Lindsay Lohan, Paris Hilton and Orlando Bloom, reportedly lost cash, jewelry and designer clothing.
“This is a no-brains caper. There’s not a lot of self-awareness. They saw it, they wanted it, they took it and continued taking it,” Detective Brett Goodkin of the Los Angeles Police Department tells the newspaper.
Its article is based in part on information from unidentified sources.
Celebrity attorney Blair Berk, who represents some victims, blamed paparazzi and entertainment media coverage of stars’ personal lives for putting the security of high-profile individuals at risk. “There are only so many shots of a star’s back gate before someone, be it a stalker or burglar, goes through it,” she tells the newspaper.
Additional and related coverage:
ABAJournal.com (2008): “Victims or Whiners? L.A. Celebrities Seek Protection Against Paparazzi”
L.A. Now (Los Angeles Times): “Four more suspects charged in celebrity ‘bling ring’ burglary case”
Updated on Oct. 28 to link to subsequent L.A. Now blog post.
