A suspect taken into custody on Monday for allegedly breaking into actor Robert De Niro's Manhattan townhouse has 26 prior arrests, many for burglaries and petty larcenies, according to police.
A spokesperson for the New York Police Department (NYPD) told Newsweek the suspect, 30-year-old Shanice Aviles, was a known burglar who "was being followed" by officers at the time of her arrest.
Aviles was seen entering De Niro's home from the basement at 2:45 a.m. local time on Monday. Once she was inside, Aviles allegedly tried to steal Christmas presents from the Meet the Parents star's home.
Police said there was no interaction between De Niro, 79, and the alleged thief, though he and one of his daughters were reportedly inside the residence when the break-in occurred. ABC News reported that police officers at the scene didn't know they were at De Niro's home until he came down the stairs after hearing the commotion.
The New York Post reported that records show Aviles was arraigned on charges last week in connection to two burglaries in Queens. The paper said she was released without bail for those incidents.
In one of those cases, Aviles is accused of stealing $1,000 from a church on October 23, according to the Post. In the other case, she is accused of stealing a debit card from an apartment and charging more than $50 at a local 7-Eleven store.
ABC News reported that Aviles was arrested for seven burglaries in the 19th Precinct on the Upper East Side—where De Niro's townhouse is located—between November 25 and December 8.
Investigative reporter Pei-Sze Cheng of WNBC in New York shared a video clip on Twitter of what she said was locksmiths changing the locks on De Niro's townhouse after the burglary attempt.
Locksmiths change the locks to the front and basement door of actor Robert Deniro's townhouse after the #NYPD finds a serial burglar inside his home early this morning #nbc4ny pic.twitter.com/1BEPMIGcNM
— Pei-Sze Cheng (@PeiSzeCheng4NY) December 19, 2022
Stan Rosenfield, a public relations representative for De Niro, told Newsweek that the actor would not be commenting further on the incident at this time.
De Niro is considered to be one of the most respected living film actors. He has won two Academy Awards for The Godfather Part II (1974) and Raging Bull (1980) and has been nominated for six more.
In 2023, he will appear in Killers of the Flower Moon, which will reunite him with director Martin Scorsese. The two have collaborated together on nine prior feature films—including Taxi Driver (1976), The King of Comedy (1983), Goodfellas (1990) and The Irishman (2019)—and one short film (2015's The Audition).
De Niro is also one of the wealthiest people in Hollywood, though much of his fortune comes from outside of acting. Tribeca Enterprises, a company he helped found in 2003, reaps large financial rewards for the star, as does the Nobu restaurant and hotel chain, of which he is a co-owner.
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