Nick Prugo, 18 ((KTLA-TV)) |
LOS ANGELES -- A member of the so-called 'bling ring' suspected in a string of burglaries involving Hollywood celebrities appeared in a Los Angeles courtroom Thursday morning.
Nicholas Prugo, 18, was set to be arraigned Thursday morning on charges of burglary, but the hearing was postponed until Dec. 2.
His attorney, Sean G. Erenstoft, filed papers requesting that Prugo be tried separately from the other suspects.
The Calabasas resident provided a full confession and implicated six others in a series of burglaries since last December, according to a search warrant affidavit made public last week in Las Vegas.
His cooperation led to the discovery of more than $3 million in designer clothes and jewelry from some of Hollywood's top stars, including Lindsay Lohan, Audrina Patridge and Paris Hilton.
He was told his cooperation would not be made public, according to Erenstoft, but once the information was released the teen received numerous death threats and was placed in protective custody.
Erenstoft said his client's information allowed investigators to crack the case that had gone unsolved for months. He would not say who made the threats.
Prugo was arrested after a tipster informed the Los Angeles Police Department that he was involved in the burglaries.
According to the court documents, Prugo implicated Rachel Lee, Jonathan Ajar, Courtney Ames, Alexis Neiers, Diana Tamayo and a man he knows only as Roy.
The man, Roy Lopez, and most of the others were subsequently arrested and charged in connection with at least one of the 10 burglaries. Lee has been arrested, but not charged. It was Lee's home that was searched last month in Las Vegas.
Meanwhile, Prugo has been charged with eight of the 10 burglaries.
"Prugo admitted to committing all the burglaries and that Rachel Lee was with him during the residential burglaries of Audrina Patridge, Lindsay Lohan, Orlando Bloom, Rachel Bilson and the Hilton family," the affidavit states.
Prugo told detectives they gained entry into the homes through unlocked doors, with the exception of the Lohan and Hilton residences. He also told detectives the group used such websites to track the stars, according to the affidavit.
Nicholas Prugo, 18, was set to be arraigned Thursday morning on charges of burglary, but the hearing was postponed until Dec. 2.
His attorney, Sean G. Erenstoft, filed papers requesting that Prugo be tried separately from the other suspects.
The Calabasas resident provided a full confession and implicated six others in a series of burglaries since last December, according to a search warrant affidavit made public last week in Las Vegas.
His cooperation led to the discovery of more than $3 million in designer clothes and jewelry from some of Hollywood's top stars, including Lindsay Lohan, Audrina Patridge and Paris Hilton.
He was told his cooperation would not be made public, according to Erenstoft, but once the information was released the teen received numerous death threats and was placed in protective custody.
Erenstoft said his client's information allowed investigators to crack the case that had gone unsolved for months. He would not say who made the threats.
Prugo was arrested after a tipster informed the Los Angeles Police Department that he was involved in the burglaries.
According to the court documents, Prugo implicated Rachel Lee, Jonathan Ajar, Courtney Ames, Alexis Neiers, Diana Tamayo and a man he knows only as Roy.
The man, Roy Lopez, and most of the others were subsequently arrested and charged in connection with at least one of the 10 burglaries. Lee has been arrested, but not charged. It was Lee's home that was searched last month in Las Vegas.
Meanwhile, Prugo has been charged with eight of the 10 burglaries.
"Prugo admitted to committing all the burglaries and that Rachel Lee was with him during the residential burglaries of Audrina Patridge, Lindsay Lohan, Orlando Bloom, Rachel Bilson and the Hilton family," the affidavit states.
Prugo told detectives they gained entry into the homes through unlocked doors, with the exception of the Lohan and Hilton residences. He also told detectives the group used such websites to track the stars, according to the affidavit.
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