Machete gang terrorise Spurs star’s family in raid on home
traumatic time and we encourage anyone who has any information to come forward to help the police with their investigation.”
Vertonghen is the latest in a long list of football players to have their homes targeted while they are away playing.
It is suspected organised gangs establish where players live then monitor fixtures before planning the raids.
Last December burglars broke into the south-west London home of Crystal Palace defender, Mamadou Sakho, 30, who was away with his family, ahead of his team’s clash with Southampton.
Valuables worth more than £500,000 were taken.
In February last year Senegalese
Liverpool player Sadio Mane, 27, had his home burgled during the Champions League draw with Bayern Munich. He was playing at Anfield when a gang forced entry into his Merseyside home between 6pm and 11.45pm.
Luxury watches, mobile phones and car keys were among the items stolen. Players living in the northwest of England have been specifically targeted during the past 15 years with Dirk Kuyt, Pepe Reina, Robbie Keane, Jermaine Pennant and Lucas Leiva all victims of burglary while playing for Liverpool.
Steven Gerrard was one of the earliest victims when his home was targeted during a Champions League match in 2007.
The gang demanded his wife, Alex, hand over jewellery and the
Threatened to ‘take her kids’
contents of a safe or else they would “take her kids”. Ex-england captain Wayne Rooney’s Cheshire mansion was burgled while he was playing in August 2016.
Other victims have included Daniel Agger and Jerzy Dudek, while Peter Crouch and wife Abbey Clancy have been victims on two separate occasions.
The crime spree has also happened on the Continent and last October Spanish police revealed they had arrested four Albanians on suspicion of carrying out a series of burglaries at the homes of footballers while they were playing matches.
Footballers such as Atletico Madrid midfielder Thomas Partey, striker Alvaro Morata, and Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane, were thought to have been victims.