International Courant
David Knezevich, a Florida man accused of kidnapping his estranged spouse whereas she was in Spain, allegedly left her condominium constructing with what gave the impression to be a suitcase on the night she disappeared in February, in line with federal court docket paperwork.
Ana Maria Knezevich, 40, was final seen coming into her Madrid condominium constructing round 2:20 p.m. on Feb. 2. Hours later, safety cameras recorded a person who appeared to have the identical traits as Knezevic, carrying a motorbike helmet, coming into the constructing round 9:30 p.m. with a can of spray paint, “which he used to disable” a surveillance digicam, an FBI agent wrote in an affidavit.
“The lens was not fully obscured, and the male is seen fastening a bit of duct tape to the lock of the constructing entrance to forestall the lock from partaking to permit subsequent entry,” the affidavit states. “Notably, the male, who appears straight on the digicam, has bodily traits that resemble Knezevich. At roughly 10:30 p.m., the male is captured leaving the elevator with what seems to be a suitcase.”
Ana’s family members reported her lacking quickly after she was final seen as a result of she failed to look for a deliberate journey with pals in Barcelona. When Spanish firefighters arrived at Ana’s condominium on Feb. 4, she was nowhere to be discovered.
David Knezevich, 36, was arrested at Miami Worldwide Airport in reference to the disappearance of his spouse, in line with Policía Nacional, the Spanish worldwide police, on Monday.
HUSBAND OF FLORIDA WOMAN ANA KNEZEVICH, WHO VANISHED IN SPAIN, ARRESTED AT MIAMI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
An indication for Colombian-born lacking American Ana Maria Knezevich is displayed on a streetlight in Madrid on Feb. 16, 2024. (AP Picture/Manu Fernandez)
Her pal from Florida, Sanna Rameau, beforehand instructed Fox Information Digital she acquired an odd textual content from Ana on Feb. 3, making her suppose her pal was “taken towards her will.”
“I met somebody great!” a translated model of the WhatsApp message, despatched in Spanish, reads. “He has a summer time home about 2 [hours] from Madrid. We’re going there now and I’ll spend a number of days there. Sign is spotty. I am going to name you after I get again.”
HUSBAND OF FLORIDA WOMAN MISSING IN SPAIN DENIES INVOLVEMENT, CLAIMS OF ‘NASTY’ DIVORCE
This picture of a screenshot offered by Sanna Rameau reveals a Feb. 3, 2024, textual content message thread between Ana Maria Knezevic and Rameau. Spanish police are looking for Knezevic, a Colombian-American lady who went lacking in Spain. (Sanna Rameau through AP)
A second message to Rameau reads, “Yesterday after remedy I wanted a stroll and he approached me on the road! Wonderful connection. Like I by no means had earlier than.”
The FBI discovered by their investigation {that a} Colombian lady who met David on a relationship app obtained a Feb. 3 message from him on WhatsApp asking him to translate the identical sentences Ana despatched to Sanna from English to “excellent Colombian,” telling the lady he had a author pal in Serbia who was “writing a script a couple of Colombian character,” the FBI agent wrote.
FLORIDA WOMAN MISSING IN SPAIN ‘TAKEN AGAINST HER WILL’ AFTER MAN SPRAY-PAINTED SECURITY CAMERAS: FRIEND
Ana Maria Knezevic, a 40-year-old Fort Lauderdale lady, vanished from the Madrid condominium constructing the place she was briefly staying on Feb. 2. (Sanna Rameau)
In some unspecified time in the future throughout their communications, the Colombian lady instructed her mom about David, and her mom researched him on Google. Search outcomes revealed that David’s spouse had gone lacking, and the Colombian lady quickly “found a information article that … contained a message purportedly from [David] Knezevich’s spouse that matched the precise wording of the textual content she and [David] Knezevich had put collectively on Feb. 3, 2023.
Legislation enforcement additionally decided that David rented a car in Serbia, his dwelling nation, in January and drove it to Spain till he returned in March.
FRIEND OF AMERICAN WOMAN WHO DISAPPEARED IN SPAIN AFTER SENDING STRANGE MESSAGES SPEAKS OUT: ‘VERY, VERY STRANGE’
This undated picture offered by Sanna Rameau reveals paint obscuring a constructing’s safety digicam the place Ana Maria Knezevic was staying in Madrid. Spanish police are looking for Knezevic, a Colombian-American lady who went lacking immediately in Madrid. (Sanna Rameau through AP)
“The proprietor of the rental automotive company knowledgeable regulation enforcement that, when Knezevich returned the car, the rental company found that the home windows had been tinted, the license plate frames had modified and two stickers had been faraway from the car,” the affidavit says.
FOLLOW THE FOX TRUE CRIME TEAM ON X
The brand new license plates had been stolen from the identical road the place Ana’s condominium constructing is situated, Spanish police discovered.
Sanna Rameau described David and Ana Knezevich as a “profitable couple” who had been married 13 years earlier than they determined to separate final summer time. (Sanna Rameau)
Spanish regulation enforcement officers have been additionally in a position to determine the model of spray paint David allegedly used to black out the safety cameras in Ana’s constructing and obtained footage of a person who seems to be Knezevich buying the spray paint from a retailer in Madrid, the affidavit states.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
In March, a lady claiming to be Ana referred to as an insurance coverage service to cancel her insurance coverage insurance policies that she held underneath the enterprise she shared with David. Collectively, they owned an IT firm and actual property in South Florida. The subsequent month, considered one of David’s workers admitted that she impersonated the sufferer upon David’s request to open up a brand new checking account in Ana’s title utilizing Ana’s Social Safety quantity.
David and Ana have been going by a contentious divorce, and regulation enforcement alleges David didn’t wish to break up property evenly with Ana. David’s legal professional, Ken Padowitz, mentioned he was not making any statements as of the time of publication.
Audrey Conklin is a digital reporter for Fox Information Digital and FOX Enterprise. E-mail tricks to [email protected] or on Twitter at @audpants.
Madrid condominium cameras captured Florida man carrying suitcase from lacking spouse’s condominium: docs
World Information,Subsequent Massive Factor in Public Knowledg
