A Pittsburgh Penguins player has been left without his Stanley Cup rings after a burglar broke in and cleaned out his trophy case, making his home the latest in a string of burglaries targeting professional athletes.
Pittsburgh Penguins officials released a statement on Tuesday announcing that the home of their forward, Evgeni Malkin, had been burglarized. The break-in reportedly happened over the weekend.
Allegheny County police were dispatched to a burglary call on Saturday, but the department does not release the names of victims of crime, so it is unclear if the Saturday call was Malkin’s.
Malkin discovered that his three Stanley Cup rings had been pilfered from his home, according to The Athletic.
The team told Action News 4 that the details of the break-in and investigation will not be publicized as the investigation is still underway.
Pittsburgh Penguins’ Evgeni Malkin skates during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Seattle Kraken in Pittsburgh, Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025 (AP)
“We are working closely with local authorities and team security. Malkin has requested that his privacy be respected during this time, and we will have no further comment on the matter,” a team spokesperson said.
The break-in at Malkin’s residence is the latest in a series of burglaries at the residences of star athletes.
Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce, both of the Kansas City Chiefs, were targeted by burglars in mid-November. Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow’s home was broken into a month later in early December.
Federal law enforcement is treating the burglaries as connected, organized thefts.
The FBI issued a warning to sports teams and athletes last month that a criminal group was targeting their properties.
“These homes are targeted for burglary due to the perception they may have high-end goods like designer handbags, jewelry, watches, and cash,” the FBI said in a Liaison Information Report.
Evgeni Malkin #71 of the Pittsburgh Penguins celebrates with the Stanley Cup Trophy after they defeated the Nashville Predators 2-0 in Game Six of the 2017 NHL Stanley Cup Final at the Bridgestone Arena on June 11, 2017 in Nashville, Tennessee (Getty Images)
According to the report, the group has “allegedly burglarized the homes of at least nine professional athletes” between September and November 2024. Malkin’s home will likely join an updated version of that list.
“While many burglaries occur while homes are unoccupied, some burglaries occur while residents are home. In these instances, individuals are encouraged to seek law enforcement help and avoid engaging with criminals, as they may be armed or use violence if confronted,” the FBI report said.
The FBI indicated that the thefts may be part of broader “criminal tourism” rings organized in South America, in which thieves are sent — or brought — to the US with the intention of conducting robberies. In at least one of these rings, the criminals handed over the stolen goods to the ringleaders, who gave them a cut of the value of the goods and then re-sold them.
One of those groups was busted in California this summer.