Suspect in Seattle home invasions of Macklemore and celebrity athletes pleads not guilty

Rap singer Macklemore performs before an NFL football game between the Seattle Seahawks and the Tennessee Titans, Sept. 19, 2021, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson, File)

SEATTLE — A man accused of breaking into the homes of Seattle-area celebrities, including baseball Hall of Famer Ichiro Suzuki and hip-hop artist Macklemore, and pepper-spraying people he encountered inside pleaded not guilty Monday to multiple charges.

Patrick Maisonet, 29, was arrested at his home in on Aug. 21 in connection with another burglary, to which he has pleaded not guilty, and has been held on bail totalling more than US$2 million.

Investigators say surveillance images and cellphone data helped link him to the break-ins, and that some of the precious items taken during the heists — including Macklemore’s Seattle Seahawks and Seattle Sounders championship rings — were later recovered from a south Seattle jewelry store.

The break-ins mirrored a slew of burglaries at the homes of well-known professional athletes across the U.S. in recent months. The players have been targeted because of the high-end products believed to be in their homes and sometimes the thefts happen when they are away with their teams for road games.

The FBI has warned sports leagues about crime organizations targeting professional athletes. The NFL and NBA have also issued security alerts after burglaries at the homes of such star athletes as Kansas City Chiefs stars Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce. Seven people were charged in connection with those burglaries in February.

In the Seattle area, another man, Earl Henderson Riley IV, was previously arrested in some of the same break-ins Maisonet has been charged in. Police said Maisonet sometimes carried digital frequency jammers to disable cellphone calls — including to 911.

The athletes targeted included Seattle Mariners pitcher Luis Castillo, whose home was hit twice; Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Blake Snell, who is from Washington; and former Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman. Snell had two Rolex watches stolen, each worth $75,000. Sherman also had a Rolex taken.

Sherman posted camera images of three people breaking into his house on his birthday in March, at least one armed with a pistol.

“House being robbed at gun point with my family in it isn’t what anyone wants for a birthday gift. Scary situation that my Wife handled masterfully and kept my kids safe,” he wrote in a statement on X at the time.

Prosecutors said Maisonet broke into Suzuki’s home on Feb. 9 while the baseball player’s wife was in her bedroom. He tried to force his way though the bedroom door as she pushed back, according to court documents, and then reached through the opening and pepper-sprayed her. She managed to bar the door before the assailant was able to enter the room, police said.

Macklemore’s home was burglarized on June 7, a day after Riley was charged. Police say Maisonet and another man broke in and used pepper spray on a 22-year-old nanny, who eventually managed to flee to a neighbour’s house for help.

Macklemore, a Seattle native, is a fan and investor in many area sports teams. He featured the two championship rings in his 2022 music video for the song “Chant.”

Phone location records traced Maisonet from his home and grandmother’s house to the homes of robbery victims, according to court documents. They also connected him to a Seattle jewelry store where police said they recovered some of the stolen items.

Cedar Attanasio, The Associated Press