Police investigating the Boxing Day raid on Jack Grealish’s home are looking at the possibility that the gang were given inside information about his whereabouts.
Burglars struck the Manchester City winger’s home in Cheshire on December 26, while he was playing against Everton at Goodison Park, and stole up to £1million in jewels and watches.
Police investigating the raid, which took place while Grealish’s fiancé and family were inside, are supposedly looking into whether the gang ‘had any inside information’ about the fact he would not be home at the time.
A source told that such crimes are often carried out by ‘serious organised crime networks’ who will have ‘huge pools of intelligence about what players are doing and when’.
They added that gangs will pay ‘big money’ to people that could tip them off with inside information and help organise a raid.
Burglars struck Manchester City winger Jack Grealish’s home in Cheshire on December 26, while he was playing against Everton at Goodison Park, and stole up to £1million in jewels and watches
Grealish’s fiance Sasha Attwood (left), 28, was with his family at their Cheshire home when the burglars struck and were forced to hit panic buttons inside the house
Grealish was playing in City’s 3-1 away win against Everton during the time of the break-in
The source said: ‘One theory being looked at is that removal workers were followed during the days that Jack was moving into the property.
‘There were vehicles coming and going for days on end in the run-up to Jack and his girlfriend getting the keys.
‘For burglars looking to carry out a raid, this is like red meat. Police will therefore be working backwards to see if there are any clues at all in the days leading up to the raid.
‘Another area they will look to get to the bottom of is whether the gang had any inside information.
‘These raids are carried out by serious organised crime networks, often based overseas, who have huge pools of intelligence about what players are doing and when.
‘They pay big money for tip-offs to help carry out raids like this.’
has also learned that Grealish’s fiancée has been left ‘terrified’ by the Boxing Day raid – and no longer feels safe on her own in the property.
Grealish’s fiance Sasha Attwood, 28, was with his family at their Cheshire home when the burglars struck and were forced to hit panic buttons inside the house.
Sources say that she is ‘in pieces’ following the thefts, which happened just days after Grealish moved into the £5.6m mansion.
Sasha Attwood pictured with her fiancé, Manchester City star winger Jack Grealish
Jack Grealish, pictured on Instagram with fiancée Sasha Attwood, poses in his rose gold Rolex in a snap on Instagram
A source said: ‘Sasha is in pieces over this. Sasha has had to deal with death threats and online abuse over and over again during the time she’s been with Jack.
‘But this feels very different. For people to come into her new home in this way has left her terrified. She’s not been on her own since it happened and right now doesn’t want to be.
‘Jack is particularly angry about the impact this has had on Sasha. They’ve been together nearly half of his life and he loves her to bits.
‘He will now do anything to protect her. They’ve got their dream home but it means nothing if she’s not happy and Jack wants her to feel as safe in it as possible.’
Details of the anguish Sasha is feeling comes as police continue to investigate the Boxing Day incident.
Officers are under big pressure to find who is responsible, because hardly any cases involving Premier League players end up being solved.
‘Cops want to find who did this,’ our source said. ‘Again and again burglars who target players just then seem to vanish off the face of the earth with the items stolen never to be seen again.
‘Detectives have told Jack and his management that they are determined this case will be different, and that they will do all they can to catch the gang behind it.’
Jack Grealish speaks with Man City’s Manel Estiarte after the full-time whistle on Boxing Day, when he is believed to have been told about the break-in at his Cheshire home
Grealish looks back out onto the pitch as he heads towards the player tunnel at Goodison Park to return home on Boxing Day
Yesterday revealed how the raid could have been carried out by a South American gang – and that those behind it may have already fled the country.
We also told how cops are probing whether burglars tracked removal vans which were coming and going from the Grealish’s Cheshire mansion.
The gang fled with £1 million of watches and jewellery from the £5.6 million Cheshire property.
It is based in an area called the ‘Golden Triangle’, repeatedly earmarked in the last three years by professional gangs from Brazil, Mexico, Chile and Peru.
Experts say they are likely to have flown into Britain especially for the raid and may have also returned to South America already.
Up to 500 burglars from those south American countries travel to the UK every year to target homes in Cheshire, the Home Counties, London and Surrey.
Grealish, 28, was playing in City’s 3-1 away win against Everton during the time of the break-in.
It is thought 10 relatives – including Sasha – were watching the match before being alerted by barking dogs and noises.
Former Met detective Peter Bleksley said: ‘This looks and sounds like a gang from South America who have come here to burgle. The area is exactly where they operate for a start.’
Grealish returned to the pitch yesterday in Man City’s 2-0 Premier League victory over Sheffield United, playing until early in the second half.
Man City boss Pep Guardiola has reportedly told his stars to limit their social media use in order to reduce the likelihood that they could be targeted in similar attacks.
He told reporters earlier this week: ‘Today you have to be careful, definitely. Not much on social media, the less they know what you are doing the better.’