Just when you thought there couldn’t possibly be any more twists in the case of Tom Brady’s missing Super Bowl jersey, it turns out we have one more: Brady has actually met the man who’s suspected of stealing from him.
Brady’s missing jersey from Super Bowl LI finally turned up on Monday after a six-week search that involved multiple law enforcement agencies. The first twist in the case is that police actually found two jerseys during their investigation. Not only did they find the Brady’s jersey from Super Bowl LI, but they also found his uniform from Super Bowl XLIX, which had also gone missing.
The second twist in the case came when a report revealed that the suspect in the jersey heist was actually a member of the international media. The man accused of stealing the jerseys, Mauricio Ortega, was credentialed to cover the Super Bowl through La Prensa, a tabloid in Mexico.
Apparently, the reason it was so easy for Ortega to pull off the theft is because he knew the protocol the Patriots would follow as they headed to their locker room after the Super Bowl. So how did he know that? Because he’s been in their locker room on at least three different occasions following a New England Super Bowl win.
We know he was in the locker room after Super Bowl LI and XLIX, and, it turns out, he was also in the Pats’ locker room after their 24-21 win over the Eagles in Super Bowl XXXIX The craziest part is that he TOOK A PICTURE WITH BRADY.
TMZ obtained several photos of Ortega on Monday, including the one you see below of him posing with the Patriots quarterback.
Ortega is apparently a Super Bowl regular because he also has a picture with Ben Roethlisberger (from Super Bowl XLIII) and the Giants’ Brandon Jacobs (Super Bowl XLII).
The Patriots are scheduled to play in Mexico next season, and at this point, it’s probably safe to say that Ortega won’t be landing a credential for that game.