Burglars strike at footballer's home and make off with £500,000 worth of goods

Police are investigating a £500,000 burglary at a premier league footballer's mansion, once targeted by the infamous Wimbledon Prowler.

Crystal Palace defender, Mamadou Sakho, 29, was away with his family, ahead of his team's clash with Southampton on December 27, when raiders broke into his house in south west London.

The footballer rents the sprawling property from former Arsenal and Chelsea star, Nicholas Anelka, who in 2014 reportedly chased prolific burglar, Asdrit Kapaj, from the back garden.

Sakho, who used to play for Paris Saint-German and Liverpool, is understood to have lost valuables worth in excess of £500,000 in the raid.

Speaking at the house, Sakho said: "Everything is OK. Me and my wife, we’re OK."

Scotland Yard believe the break in occurred on the afternoon of December 27, the day before Sakho and his Crystal Palace teammates were due to play at Southampton.

Police have released an image of a woman who was seen on CCTV nearby who they want to contact about the incident.

Dean Shaw of the Metropolitan Police said: "It is believed that two male suspects carried out this burglary but we would like to speak to the woman pictured as she was seen near the address on the day of the incident and may be able to assist us.”

It is the latest in a string of raids on multi-million pound properties around the capital.

Earlier this week four men from Chile were sentenced for a break in at the home of celebrity chef Marcus Wareing, who also lives in Wimbledon.

The upmarket area, which is close to the famous tennis club, was the favourite hunting ground of Kapaj, 43, who was jailed for 14 years in June after admitting a string of burglaries dating back to 2008.

But detectives believe the fish and chip shop owner - who travelled from his home in Manchester - he might have actually been behind at least 200 break-ins, stealing valuables worth up to £5 million.

Former tennis champion Boris Becker was among his targets.

The decorator-turned-fish and chip shop worker commuted from Greater Manchester to carry out the burglaries, stalking the Wimbledon streets at night looking for unoccupied homes and waiting for residents to go to bed before he would strike.