'Ringleader' charged with burglaries of MLB, NFL stars' Seattle homes, prosecutors say
"House being robbed at gun point with my family in it isn’t what anyone wants for a birthday gift," former Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman said in March on X.
Washington state authorities have charged and accused a man of robbing the homes of multiple professional Seattle-area athletes, including former Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman and Mariners center fielder Julio Rodríguez.
The King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office announced the charges on June 6 against the 21-year-old man, whom they did not identify. County inmate records, along with reporting by ABC News and NBC News, say that Earl Henderson Riley IV was booked on June 6 for four counts of residential burglary, one count of first-degree robbery, one count of eluding police and one count of unlawful possession of a firearm.
The prosecuting attorney's office alleges the Seattle man burglarized the homes of Sherman, Rodríguez, Mariners pitcher Luis Castillo and Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Blake Snell, who is from the area.
Prosecutors say the alleged serial burglar is being held in the King County Jail on $1 million bail.
'Scary situation'
In March, Sherman commented on the burglary of his home in an X post, saying, "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. If anyone has any info that can help find these people please reach out."
In the post, Sherman included video of the burglary, which shows three masked and hooded men jumping out of his home's window and fleeing, two of them carrying bags.
“The King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office worked for weeks on multiple search warrants that led to the filing of these felony charges today,” King County Prosecuting Attorney Leesa Manion said in a statement. "All people deserve to feel safe in their homes, and our office will continue to hold people accountable for criminal behavior.”
Alleged burglar in custody deemed the 'ringleader'
The investigation into the burglaries began in early 2025, the prosecuting attorney's office said, adding that it was working with six different police jurisdictions in the case at one point. The investigation is ongoing, and additional charges may be filed against others who are believed to be involved, according to the prosecutors.
Senior Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Gary Ernsdorff called the individual in custody the "ringleader of this bunch," and by charging him, it allowed authorities to "interrupt this burglary crew," he added.
"That doesn’t mean our work is finished. We still want to go and identify everybody who was involved and see if there are additional people that we can have sufficient evidence to charge," Ernsdorff said in a statement.
The prosecuting attorney's office said the alleged burglar was previously held in custody and released by the court on Feb. 7, after pleading guilty to three separate robbery counts. Court records reviewed by Paste BN show Riley pleaded guilty to three counts of first-degree robbery on Jan. 27, stemming from an arrest on Aug. 15, 2023.
According to the prosecuting attorney's office, the individual in custody has another pending King County Superior Court case, which includes the eluding police and first-degree unlawful firearm possession charges. Like Riley, the office said the alleged burglar was booked into the King County Jail on June 6.
Jonathan Limehouse covers breaking and trending news for Paste BN. Reach him at JLimehouse@gannett.com.