Model Fabio Lanzoni is the latest victim in what is believed to be a burglary ring targeting celebrities. The model-actor says the thieves made off with $200,000 worth of valuables from his home in West Valley.
“You feel violated, angry, upset, it’s your home,” Fabio told CBS-LA.
The valuables included a collection of gold coins and several valuable watches, four of which he “really loved.”
Fabio isn’t the first celebrity to fall victim to burglary. Since January, at least seven celebrities have been robbed of hundreds of thousands of dollars in jewelry and cash. Singer Alanis Morissette had $2 million in jewelry stolen from her home.
Nick Young, Nicki Minaj, Emmy Rossum, Yasiel Puig and Jaime Pressly are also among the growing list of celebrities who have been victims of burglary.
Fabio said the state’s early release program is to blame for the crime spree. The program allows convicted felons to be released before their full sentences have been served.
“They see a nice home, they see nice cars, they burglarize everybody,” said Fabio. “Just in my area the month of March, more than 350 homes just in one month, and just a section of Los Angeles. It’s an epidemic.”
The Los Angeles Police Department says there’s a pattern to the burglaries. A Knock-Knock Task Force has been established to solve the problem
In March, Lt. Todd Hankel of the Knock-Knock Task Force in San Fernando told The Hollywood Reporter, “It’s usually a lone individual trying to service their addiction. This is different. This is organized crime.”
Fabio, a native of Milan, Italy, who became a U.S. citizen in 2016, said he came home and “saw one of the windows [broken].” The model-actor said he knew right away that something had happened.
The thieves managed to find just the right time to break into Fabio’s home. His dogs, which are usually indoors, were outdoors that day. The thieves also came from a neighboring yard, a spot where Fabio did not have security cameras mounted.
“The safe was recovered in a nice area, a good area, but a few blocks away … is a known gang area,” William Dunn, LAPD police detective working the case, told Access Hollywood.
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