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Suspect in Conn. jeweler murder nabbed in Spain
Westport, Conn.--Spanish National Police have arrested the man wanted in connection with the Dec. 8 shooting death of a jeweler and the wounding of his associate.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Connecticut, 41-year-old Andrew Robert Levene, a/k/a Robert Thomas, was taken into custody in Spain on Jan. 23. He faces various federal charges involving murder, robbery and a firearm.
Levene allegedly contacted the jeweler, 65-year-old Yekutiel “Kuti” Zeevi, owner of YZ Jewelry Manufacturer in Westport, in early December and asked him to locate several diamonds between 2 and 3 carats in size. He examined the stones on the evening of Dec. 7 and told Zeevi he would need to “sleep on it.”
The U.S. Attorney’s Office said the next evening, Levene returned and, after looking at the stones, took out a gun and opened fire, killing Zeevi and wounding his associate, 48-year-old Ronen Konfino. The suspect then grabbed the diamonds, worth about $300,000, and fled the shop.
Levene allegedly flew from Philadelphia to Amsterdam on Dec. 11, eventually making his way to Spain.
Numerous local, national and international agencies aided in the investigation, including the Westport Police, Connecticut State Police, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Marshal’s Office, the Connecticut State’s Attorney’s Office for the Judicial District of Stamford/Norwalk, the Philadelphia Police Department, the Pennsylvania State Police, the New York Police Department, Interpol Spain, Interpol and the United States National Central Bureau in Washington.









