Two men have been charged after gear was stolen from England’s World Cup team ahead of their arrival in Kansas City, authorities said.Â
Jackson County Prosecutor Melesa Johnson announced late Saturday night that suspects Mustafa Salik and Erfan Kamal were charged with one felony count of receiving stolen property. The stolen gear had an estimated value of $18,000, the Jackson County prosecutor’s office said in its news release.Â
The two suspects are in custody. They are being held on $75,000 bond.Â
“Jackson County will not tolerate any criminal activity that targets World Cup visitors, including the international teams that have traveled here to compete,” Johnson said in a statement. “We thank the Kansas City Police Department and our on-call attorneys for their quick work investigating this incident and filing charges immediately.  Â
The gear was stolen “at some point between their over-the-road transport from Florida to their arrival at the training facility in Kansas City,” Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas previously said on social media.Â
The vehicles transporting equipment from Florida to Kansas City arrived without the equipment, the BBC said.Â
Footwear and soccer balls were among the items taken, the BBC reported, but the theft did not include anything “game-critical.” It’s not clear when the items were stolen or how they were recovered.Â
The England team arrived in Kansas City’s Swope Soccer Village Saturday. England goalkeeper Dean Henderson addressed the issue when asked by reporters following the team’s arrival in Kansas City.Â
“To be honest, I didn’t really notice anything about it until you started saying,” Henderson said. “I believe all the boots came back, we got everything back, so nobody’s bothered.”
The team will have their first training session on Sunday, and play their first World Cup match against Croatia, in Arlington, Texas, on Wednesday.Â
