A second community in Williamson County, Tennessee, has reported the presence of South American Theft Groups (SATG), sophisticated groups of foreign criminals who commit devastating burglaries of upscale American homes before returning to their country of origin.
The Brentwood Police Department confirmed SATG is active in the area, as well as Belle Meade, in a Tuesday post to social media, which urged residents to be vigilant and report suspicious activity, including vehicles left running without an occupant.
“A dark-colored BMW X3, believed to be a 2022–2024 model, was identified as a vehicle of interest after being observed on traffic cameras repeatedly circling the area near one of the burglaries. The vehicle appears to be displaying a fake or altered license plate,” wrote the department.
It informed residents, “The suspects are known to operate in the evening hours, shortly after dark. Video surveillance from the Belle Meade incident shows the suspects entering a residence at 6:36 p.m. To date, all related incidents have occurred on Friday and Saturday evenings, though previous SATG groups have been known to operate throughout the week.”
City of Brentwood Director Charles Booth confirmed in comments to WKRN that these criminals are using the same SATG tactics being used across the country.
“This is kind of a nationally known group, the FBI has been investigating this group,” Booth told the outlet. “They hit a home around 5 p.m. to 9 p.m., so sometimes when you’re going out to dinner, or going out to run errands after work; they find that people are more relaxed around that time and might leave without locking their doors.”
The latest string of SATG-related crimes in Williamson County come about 11 months after a police lieutenant with the nearby Nolensville Police Department told The Tennessee Star that authorities determined the criminals targeting Tennessee operate throughout the United States.
“Through investigation, we’ve noticed they work not just the southeast, but they’ll come to the southeast, go as far south as Florida, [then] go to Texas, Oklahoma, and then go on out west,” before eventually returning to a “home base,” said Lieutenant Josh Combs.
At the time, Combs told The Star law enforcement had no credible number of SATG-related criminals in the country.
“It’s just unknowable,” said Combs. “That would be just a shot in the dark if I gave a number.”
Seven alleged criminals from Chile were accused of being associated with SATGs in a February indictment. Their alleged victims were professional football and basketball players, including the Tennessee home of a Memphis Grizzlies player.
Following the high profile arrests, former Acting FBI Director Brian Driscoll said federal law enforcement was targeting all SATG criminals, and not just those who allegedly victimize household names.
“While some victims of these brazen crimes happen to be professional athletes with careers in the spotlight, rest assured: The FBI is dedicated to protecting all Americans from violent crime—no matter their job description or zip code,” said Driscoll.
Driscoll is currently suing the Trump administration after he was terminated for allegedly seeking to shield agents who engaged in the Biden-era dragnet of Republicans who attended the protests in Washington, D.C. on January 6, 2021.
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Pennsylvania Daily Star and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Brentwood Police arrest” by Brentwood Police Department.
Just doing jobs that American citizens refuse to do. Just ask Joe Biden.
Just remember at election time why we have this problem in our state/country…….you can thank the Democrats and those that support the Democrats. It was 2 Democrat Presidents (Obama and Biden) that opened the flood gates into our country allowing criminals to enter and terrorize our women, children and our homes. To the people of Nashville that seem to love their Democrats…..you get exactly what you vote for.