Pot-of-gold ‘thief’ found Ecuador bust mos. after NYC ‘rob’
Cops finally found their flaky thief — but not his legendary pot of gold.
The man who swiped a bucket of gold flakes from an armored truck in Midtown last year was busted Wednesday in Ecuador by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents and local cops, the NYPD told The Post.
Julio Nivelo didn’t have the looted gold with him when he was caught and the treasure has not been recovered, the NYPD said.
The 155-pound Nivelo grabbed the 86-pound pail of gold from the truck when the driver left it unattended on West 48th Street in September, cops said. The powdery bullion is estimated to be worth $1.6 million.
According to the police in Guayaquil, Ecuador, Nivelo, 53, was nabbed while walking on the street, following a twomonth manhunt in the South American country.
He had reportedly been deported to Ecuador on four occasions since 1994 for similar thefts, sources told The Post last month.
Nivelo, who has at least five different aliases, including Luis Toledo and David Vargas, had living in New Jersey.
The NYPD said last month that they believed Nivelo was a “career criminal” connected to seven other thefts from vehicles and delivery trucks around Manhattan.
Police believe he snatched a box of expensive Jimmy Choo shoes in May from a truck on Madison Avenue near East 62nd Street but dropped it when the driver yelled at him.
He also may be involved in the theft of clothing and eyewear from a FedEx truck on East 78th Street in August, police said. been