Former Premier League striker reveals how cleaner allegedly stole £400,000-worth of jewellery
A former Premier League footballer has revealed the toll on his family after the alleged theft of nearly half a million pounds worth of jewelery by a cleaner – and vowed to sue the cleaning company.
Benik Afobe, 30, who plays in the United Arab Emirates for Hatta FC, last week accused the cleaner of stealing £400,000 worth of valuables from his family home.
The ex-Bournemouth and Wolves striker claimed the alleged incident took place at his mother’s house in Elstree on the morning of Wednesday, June 14, before taking to social media to try and find the cleaner, sparking several calls for government support placed.
The 30-year-old even went so far as to post the cleaner’s passport, with her personal details and photo, for his 1.2 million Instagram followers to see. CCTV footage of the alleged suspect leaving his house, as well as links to their TikTok account, on his Instagram story.
And Afobe talked about the stress of the harrowing incident on the Counter Attack podcast — saying the woman, who he claimed fled to Romania, could have had a gun before questioning the police response to the alleged theft.
Former Premier League footballer Benik Afobe (pictured) has spoken openly about the emotional toll on his family from the alleged theft of nearly half a million pounds worth of jewelery by a cleaner
Striker Afobe, 30, said ‘she could have had a gun’ and has vowed to sue the cleaning company
He said, ‘Spiritually. The woman who stole gets there at nine, 9:45. She comes down and says “My husband just called me, my son is not feeling well, I have to go”. If you hear that, I’ve obviously lost my daughter – “go ahead, go”. Madam goes upstairs and says “Oh my bracelets are gone”.
Chases her away, comes to the end of the road and says, “If you give everything back now, I won’t go to the police”. She smashes two watches, gets into someone else’s car. Came close to her. No phone, not safe, the woman runs away. Luckily someone found out through social media that she was actually back in Romania.
“I don’t want to start berating the police, but I feel more could have been done. But we will sue the company. That same woman could also have had a gun in that bag… we were in the house, it’s that crazy. (It was worth) about £400,000, which is a lot of money for anyone. My mother lost something that her mother gave her.
“In the end it’s just material things, no one got hurt, people go through worse things. It’s about someone having the guts to steal when you’re in the house. I will not be so respected. Let’s hope that the police and lawyers can play their part in the situation and that it can be resolved.’
And Afobe, who spent three seasons in the English top flight with Bournemouth, also discussed how difficult it was to keep playing football after the tragic loss of his daughter.
He added, “That’s the hardest part of the whole situation. To suggest. It’s not even the grieving one. If I’m being completely honest, football has been a lot harder since she passed away, 100 percent. I think about it all the time.
“I have other children, and they are a blessing, but when I first came back it was hard. I played badly. Stoke fans always had me on, they didn’t know I was going through things. I’ve been to hell and back.’
In an earlier post of the photo of the alleged suspect’s passport, he wrote: ‘This woman stole £400,000 worth of my family’s jewelery this morning from my mum’s house in Elstree while cleaning!! If anyone knows her, please let me know ASAP!!’
Afobe posted a photo of the alleged suspect’s passport online (left) before taking it down
Afobe’s Instagram also featured a photo of the alleged suspect’s social media posts
Afobe played for Bournemouth in the Premier League, as well as several clubs including Stoke
Another post, this time including her TikTok account, read: “If you’re going to rob someone for half a million pounds worth of valuables, at least delete your social media first.”
Afobe was eliminated six times by DR Congo, but last played for the Leopards in 2018.
His best season probably came in 2021-22 when he scored 13 goals and three assists for Millwall in all competitions and made 41 appearances on loan.
The resulting transfer produced a return of just two strikeouts in 10 games.
He joined Hatta on a free transfer in January and scored nine goals in 17 appearances for the club.