14 October 2023 , 15:57
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The raiders who broke into the home of Little Mix star Perrie Edwards are believed to be from a gang of South American “burglary tourists”.
No one has been arrested since crooks swooped on the £3.5million mansion the singer shares with footballer fiancé Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain a year ago. And it is feared the professional thieves have fled the UK. Police experts reckon Perrie and Alex, who live in an exclusive Cheshire neighbourhood popular with Premier League stars, were the victims of criminals who fly here pretending to be on holiday and then carry out targeted raids in well-heeled areas.
Perrie and ex-Liverpool and Arsenal ace Alex, both 30, were at home with son Axel, now two, when the raiders struck. The thieves, who made off with jewellery and designer handbags worth thousands, used a ladder to get in via an upstairs window – a tactic used by South American pros to bypass alarms.
Perrie and Alex were shaken and upset after the burglary (@perrieedwards/Instagram)
Former Metropolitan Police detective Peter Bleksley (Andrew Teebay/Liverpool Echo)Former Metropolitan Police detective Peter Bleksley said: “This has all the hallmarks of a gang from South America who came here specifically to burgle. “They would have left very soon after and gone back home. It’s possible the property was monitored. It is a very sophisticated crime model.”
Perrie and Alex’s exclusive area, nicknamed the Golden Triangle, has suffered a spate of high profile raids. Sources say up to 500 burglars from Brazil, Chile and Peru travel to the UK every year to rob homes in areas like London, Surrey, Cheshire and the Home Counties, grabbing up to £400,000 of swag a time. The British arm of their organised crime gang gives them a car, phone and directions to the target property, plus instructions such as how to beat security systems.
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Most flee soon after but if caught they are under orders not to talk in police interviews and to plead guilty as soon as possible to protect the gang, sources say. The FBI and Interpol are trying to crack down on the crime model. A source said: “There’s a real fear that Perrie and Alex were targeted by an organised crime gang from South America.
Detectives have not made any arrests. The couple wanted those responsible to be caught and face justice. “It left them shaken and upset. A year on, it’s thought those responsible have gone back to South America with items they took.” In 2018, Chilean raiders swiped a shirt won by former Liverpool striker Luis Suarez during a raid in Sevenoaks, Kent