Posted Dec 2nd 2009 12:30PM by TMZ Staff
The Hollywood Hills Burglar Bunch are really just a bunch of innocent kids ... or at least kids who have now officially pled not guilty.
Nick Prugo was in court today and pled not guilty to eight felony burglaries.
Diana Tamayo -- not guilty to two felony burglaries.
Courtney Ames and Roy Lopez Jr. -- not guilty to one felony burglary.
Bail for Prugo and Tamayo was set at $20,000 -- for Lopez and Ames it was $50,000.
The gang will have a courtroom reunion in January.
Filed under: Celebrity Justice, Burglar Bunch
Tags: burglar bunch, BurglarBunch, courtney ames, CourtneyAmes, diana tamayo, DianaTamayo, hollywood burglar bunch, HollywoodBurglarBunch, nick prugo, NickPrugo, roy lopez jr, RoyLopezJr
Posted Dec 1st 2009 1:51PM by TMZ Staff
One of the Burglar Bunch suspects admitted to peeing and puking in Orlando Bloom's bushes while three others were burglarizing his house ... this according to a detective's testimony today in suspect Alexis Neiers' preliminary trial.
Detective Brett Goodkin said he recently interviewed Alexis in the presence of her lawyer ... and that she admitted to being at Orlando's house on the night it was burglarized.
Det. Goodkin testified Alexis told him she rode with fellow suspect Nick Prugo to Bloom's house -- but was drunk and didn't know why they were going there.
Det. Goodkin said Alexis told him they met two females at Orlando's place -- including fellow suspect Rachel Lee -- and that Lee had already cut the fence outside Orlando's house before they even got there.
A different detective got on the stand after Goodkin, and said Alexis told him when she saw everyone ransacking Orlando's place, she got sick ... then threw up and peed in the bushes outside.
Neither detective said Alexis admitted to taking anything from the house.
UPDATE: Alexis will stand trial -- she's set to be arraigned on December 15.
Filed under: Burglar Bunch
Tags: alexis neiers, AlexisNeiers, burglar bunch, BurglarBunch, orlando bloom, OrlandoBloom
Posted Dec 1st 2009 12:12PM by TMZ Staff
TMZ has obtained a photo taken by security cameras outside of Orlando Bloom's house on the morning it was burglarized ... and authorities think the pic shows the Hollywood Hills Burglar Bunch doing their thing.
Even though only two suspected members of the bunch -- Alexis Neiers and Nick Prugo -- have been charged with the Bloom burglary, the photo clearly shows four hooded people walking in the street.
Filed under: Exclusives, Burglar Bunch
Posted Nov 21st 2009 2:15AM by TMZ Staff
It doesn't get much dumber than this -- one of the chicks arrested in the Burglar Bunch case rolled into court Friday wearing one of the very necklaces the gang is suspected of stealing from Lindsay Lohan.
Didn't take Sherlock Holmes to notice -- investigators immediately confiscated the necklace from Courtney Ames' neck because it looked just like the one stolen from Lindsay Lohan's home ... in fact, we already did a story about Courtney wearing the same exact necklace last week.
Ames had already told TMZ that she bought the rosary beads for five bucks at some shop, but today she told authorities the charm on the necklace was given to her by another member of the bunch -- i.e. it may have been stolen from someone at some point.
Filed under: Celebrity Justice, Burglar Bunch
Tags: burglar bunch, BurglarBunch, court, courtney ames, CourtneyAmes, lindsay lohan, LindsayLohan
Posted Nov 20th 2009 12:20AM by TMZ Staff
TMZ has learned a kid named Kanan Wolf is the latest "person of interest" in the Burglar Bunch investigation.
According to law enforcement sources, Wolf is close friends with primary suspects Rachel Lee -- who cops believe is the mastermind behind the burglaries -- and Diana Tamayo -- who's been charged with felony first degree residential burglary of Lindsay Lohan and Ashley Tisdale's homes.
Wolf's not yet a suspect -- but cops really want to talk to him.
Look familiar? You might recognize Wolf from partying it up at a swanky L.A. nightclub with Diana, Rachel, and Courtney Ames -- all suspects in the case.
Filed under: Exclusives, Burglar Bunch
Tags: ashley tisdale, AshleyTisdale, burglar bunch, BurglarBunch, diana tamayo, DianaTamayo, kanan wolf, KananWolf, lindsay lohan, LindsayLohan, rachel lee, RachelLee
Posted Nov 16th 2009 4:28PM by TMZ Staff
Hollywood Hills Burglar Bunch suspect Alexis Neiers pled not guilty today to her alleged involvement in the burglary of Orlando Bloom's home last summer -- and she looked goooooooooood doing it.
After Alexis finished up in court, she stopped in the hallway and had her hair make-up done by a few pros -- before she met the press on her way out. Priorities, people!
Alexis -- who was charged with one count felony first degree residential burglary last month -- is due back in court on November 30.
As TMZ reported, Alexis' sister -- Playboy model Tess Taylor -- was seen wearing what Rachel Bilson believes is her stolen vest.
Bilson, Lindsay Lohan, Audrina Patridge, Paris Hilton, Orlando Bloom and Brian Austin Green are all possible victims of the Burglar Bunch.
Filed under: Celebrity Justice, Burglar Bunch
Tags: alexis neiers, AlexisNeiers, burglary bunch, BurglaryBunch, nick prugo, NickPrugo, orlando bloom, OrlandoBloom, rachel bilson, RachelBilson
Posted Nov 12th 2009 9:25AM by TMZ Staff
It's all fun and games until someone gets outed as a rat -- so the lawyer for Hollywood Hills Burglar Bunch suspect Nick Prugo wants his client kept far, far away from the people he snitched on.
Prugo just showed up for his arraignment in L.A. criminal court.
We're told Prugo's lawyer is pissed that a sealed affidavit was released last week, revealing that his client blew the whistle on the six other people who were allegedly involved in the burglaries of Lindsay Lohan, Audrina Patridge, Rachel Bilson, Orlando Bloom and Brian Austin Green.
We've learned Prugo's lawyer will file legal docs today asking the judge to try Prugo separately from the other suspects.
And there's this: Prugo was put into protective custody when he was labeled a rat. Among the many death threats he's received ... "Snitches get stitches."
UPDATE: Prugo's arraignment was waived until December 2.
Filed under: Exclusives, Burglar Bunch
Tags: audrina patridge, AudrinaPatridge, burglary, hollywood hill burglar bunch, HollywoodHillBurglarBunch, lindsay lohan, LindsayLohan, nick prugo, NickPrugo, paris hilton, ParisHilton, suspect
Posted Nov 12th 2009 12:33AM by TMZ Staff
Burglar Bunch suspect Nick Prugo just won another genius award -- taking a photo of himself wearing what looks to be Paris Hilton's stolen necklace ... then taking it one step further by taunting the heiress with a few choice words.
TMZ obtained the picture Prugo took of himself while flossing a "P" necklace which looks exactly like the one Paris -- one of the Burglar Bunch victims -- bought last year when she was dating Benji Madden.
Prugo even had the stones to write the following message on the pic: "Hey Paris, look familiar?"
Funny ... Prugo can ask Paris -- who was locked up a few years ago -- the same question if he ends up getting time as well.
Filed under: Paris Hilton, Exclusives, Burglar Bunch
Tags: burglary bunch, BurglaryBunch, nick prugo, NickPrugo, paris hilton, ParisHilton
Posted Nov 11th 2009 12:40AM by TMZ Staff
Though Burglar Bunch suspect Jonathan Ajar -- aka "Johnny Dangerous" -- continues to stew in his L.A. jail cell, he wants to make one thing clear: He ain't rollin' over on anyone while he's in there.
As we previously reported, Nick Prugo spilled his guts to police after he was arrested -- and in his finger pointing, named Ajar as one of the people involved.
Ajar's attorney, Michael A. Goldstein, tells TMZ: "While Mr. Prugo continues to implicate others ... Ajar is sitting in custody and has not pointed the finger at anybody. He understands his minimal role in this mess."
Then there's this: Goldstein says Ajar has only known the rest of the group for the last six months. Paris' break-in happened in December.
Ajar is facing six counts possession for sale of a controlled substance, three counts possession of a firearm by a felon and one count possession of ammunition.
Filed under: Exclusives, Burglar Bunch
Tags: burglar bunch, BurglarBunch, hollywood burglar bunch, HollywoodBurglarBunch, johnny ajar, johnny dangerous, JohnnyAjar, JohnnyDangerous, jonathan ajar, JonathanAjar, lindsay lohan, LindsayLohan, nick prugo, NickPrugo, paris hilton, ParisHilton
Posted Nov 10th 2009 12:40AM by TMZ Staff
One of these four is not like the others! TMZ has found pictures of four other possible celebrity targets of the Hollywood Hills Burglar Bunch, including one photo of ... Prince Humperdinck from "The Princess Bride"!?!
According to a search warrant affidavit released last week, Nick Prugo and his cronies allegedly used TMZ.com to search for information about their victims.
On a computer seized from Prugo by the LAPD -- which we obtained -- we found a bunch of photos that were jacked from our site, including pics of Christina Milian, Adam Lambert, Hugh Jackman ... and Chris Sarandon as the evil "Prince Humperdinck."
The first three we get ... but Humperdinck? Must've been a fluke.
Filed under: Exclusives, Burglar Bunch
Tags: adam lambert, AdamLambert, chris sarandon, ChrisSarandon, christina milian, ChristinaMilian, hugh jackman, HughJackman, prince humperdinck, PrinceHumperdinck
Posted Nov 9th 2009 2:04PM by TMZ Staff
Nick Prugo -- the alleged member of the Hollywood Hills Burglar Bunch who dropped a dime on his comrades -- is the target of "numerous" death threats and is now in protective custody, according to his lawyer.
Attorney Sean Erenstoft tells TMZ, "Multiple law enforcement agencies are involved in the protection of Nick Prugo and his family."
According to an LAPD affidavit, Prugo armed cops with info on the suspects, the location of the property they allegedly stole and the celebrities they allegedly stole from -- including Lindsay Lohan, Paris Hilton, Audrina Patridge and Rachel Bilson. His account led to the arrests of the other suspects.
Filed under: Celebrity Justice, Exclusives, Burglar Bunch
Tags: affadvit, burglar bunch, BurglarBunch, burglary, nick prugo, NickPrugo
Posted Nov 9th 2009 4:45AM by TMZ Staff
If you got it, flaunt it -- something Hollywood Hills Burglar Bunch suspect Rachel Lee may be guilty of doing with a necklace that was allegedly stolen from Rachel Bilson.
According to a Las Vegas search warrant affidavit, Nick Prugo gave cops a photo from a video conference he had with Lee. In it, Prugo said Lee was wearing a "yellow metal pendant with an inscription of the letter 'R' ... and advised that this necklace was stolen from Rachel Bilson's residence."
As TMZ first reported, authorities claim Nick Prugo provided a full confession about the crimes and pointed out Lee as the "driving force" of the burglar crew.
Filed under: Exclusives, Burglar Bunch
Tags: hollywood hills burglar bunch, HollywoodHillsBurglarBunch, nick prugo, NickPrugo, rachel lee, RachelLee
Posted Nov 6th 2009 4:07PM by TMZ Staff
A Hollywood Hills Burglar Bunch suspect ratted out the other alleged members of the group, this according to a search warrant affidavit just released out of Las Vegas.
According to the document ... after Nick Prugo was arrested, he met with detectives and "provided a full confession and implicated several other suspects: Rachel Lee, Dianna Tomayo [sic], Alexis Neiers, Courtney Ames, Jonathan Ajar and a man only known as Roy."
In the doc, it says Prugo admitted to committing all of the burglaries and that Rachel Lee was with him during the burglaries of Audrina Patridge, Lindsay Lohan, Orlando Bloom, Rachel Bilson and Paris Hilton.
Also, "Prugo stated that Lee was the driving force of the burglar crew and that her motivation was based in her desire to own the designer wardrobes of the Hollywood celebrities that she admired."
On the burglary of Paris' residence: "Prugo stated they entered Hilton's residence approximately three times, prior to the burglary in December 2008. That they removed cash, narcotics and thousands of dollars worth of jewelry to include family heirlooms."
On the burglary of Orlando's residence: "Prugo detailed how the crew removed several expensive wristwatches, artwork, men's and women's clothing from the location."
Click here... it's not over yet
Filed under: Exclusives, Burglar Bunch
Tags: burglar bunch, BurglarBunch, las vegas, LasVegas, nick prugo, NickPrugo
