A man charged with multiple break-ins and burglaries, including at the home of England footballer Raheem Sterling in Oxshott, Surrey, last December, has been given a trial date.

Emiliano Krosi (23) appeared at Guildford Crown Court from HMP Wandsworth last Thursday to face 33 charges of conspiracy to commit burglary. According to Surrey Police, jewellery and watches worth £300,000 were stolen from Sterling’s property while he was at the World Cup in Qatar. The break-in happened on December 3 and was reported on the same day.

Judge Rufus Taylor scheduled a plea hearing for November 3 and a two-week trial on February 14, 2024. Krosi is to remain under custody until then.

“We will see you for a further case management hearing on November 3. You will be brought from Wandsworth for that hearing,” said Judge Taylor.

“I have fixed a trial in case it’s needed for February 14 next year, and that will be a 10-day fixed trial.” 

Prosecutor Laurence Imrie told the court that he expected four defendants if the case went to trial and that efforts were being made to track the others down.

Other suspects at large

Police are still searching for three Albanian nationals, Alfred Isufi (48), Gerard Kalaja (22), and Henri Osmani (44), suspected to be in connection with 33 burglaries across southeast England, including Sterling’s home. 

Police believe the suspects have stolen an estimated £1 million worth of items in raids across Surrey, Essex, Kent, and Hertfordshire. All three men have ties to Harlow, Essex, and north London and are possibly still in the UK.

According to Detective Inspector James Ansell in an interview with BBC, a team of Surrey Police detectives investigating the burglaries will make a public appeal on BBC One’s Crimewatch in the next few weeks. This serves as an attempt to locate the three men. 

Apart from Sterling’s residence, the details of the other 32 burglaries are yet to be made public. However, Detective Inspector Ansell said that they mainly happened in affluent areas.

Surrey Police have informed the victims regarding the case updates. They have not commented on any new information revealed in the weeks since.

Worries over burglary

Upon hearing the news, the Chelsea and former Manchester City star travelled home from England’s World Cup camp in Qatar to be with his family. As a result, he missed the team’s 3-0 win over Senegal on December 4. 

“I beat myself up that I didn’t keep my family secure,” Sterling said in an interview with the Sun. “It’s one thing I said I would always do, so it wasn’t a nice feeling. I couldn’t live with myself if anything had come to pass from it.”

The burglary at Sterling’s home rattled the entire England camp. Teammate Kalvin Phillips explained that the rest of the squad was also concerned about the safety of their own families. Following the incident, some of his teammates reportedly tightened their homes’ security.

“Once one player goes through it, there is always a thought in the back of your mind that it might happen to you,” Phillips said. 

This incident should remind high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs) that living in affluent areas can also be dangerous, especially with burglaries in a surge. 

You can invest in various security measures to mitigate the threats, from installing perimeter protection, gate access control, CCTV security systems, security lighting, intruder alarms, and remote security monitoring to getting trained guard dogs and hiring personal security staff.

You can also hire security agencies like Marengo to find the right security solution for your residence. After creating the appropriate security plan, they can implement the security procedures and immediate action plans and work with emergency services should it be necessary.