Pawn Shop Owner Pleads Guilty to Selling Property Stolen from Bengals QB Joe Burrow's Home

A pawn shop owner has pleaded guilty to buying and selling items stolen from the home of Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow in a December robbery, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of New York.

Dimitriy Nezhenskiy, 43, of North Bergen, N.J., pleaded guilty Friday to one count of conspiracy to receive stolen property.

Nezhenskiy admitted to knowingly buying stolen property, including luxury watches, handbags and jewelry.

"This defendant ran a black-market pipeline, buying stolen luxury goods from organized theft crews that targeted homes and businesses," New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said in a news release Friday. "It was a deliberate operation that helped professional burglars prey on innocent people."

Co-defendant, Juan Villar, 48, pleaded guilty to the same charge in June. Villar was the co-owner of the pawn shop. According to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s office, the two had been working together since 2020 to buy and receive goods stolen from outside of New York.

“For more than five years, Dimitriy Nezhinskiy established a demand for stolen merchandise, which allowed South American Theft Groups to profit from repeated burglaries,” FBI Assistant Director in Charge Christopher Raia said in a statement. “His purchases perpetuated a ripple of criminality targeting residences and businesses across the country.

Burrow is one of several high-profile athletes who were victims of the group.

On Season 2 of Neftlix’s “Quarterback,” Bengals defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo asked Burrow what the thieves stole.

“They got all my jewelry,” Burrow told him. “But they could’ve stolen way worse things than that. I’m not trippin’. It was expensive, but all of it was insured.

Burrow admitted later in the show that the burglary made his consider moving and that he canceled his purchase of a $1 million Batmobile from Warner Bros. specifically because of the crime.

“I just get very uncomfortable,” Burrow said. “My life is very public. That comes with the job. But there’s certain parts of your life that are yours. Your house is one of those.”

In January, three men alleged to be a part of a South American theft group were arrested after posing for photos while wearing and displaying items stolen from Burrow’s home.

In February, the three were indicted by a federal grand jury in Cincinnati.