A South Florida entrepreneur facing federal charges over the murder and disappearance of his estranged wife in Spain has died in custody, his lawyer confirmed Monday.
David Knezevich, 37, had been awaiting trial on charges that included kidnapping resulting in death, foreign domestic violence resulting in death, and the foreign murder of a U.S. citizen connected to the Feb. 2, 2024 disappearance of Ana Maria Henao Knezevich.
In a brief statement, defense attorney Jayne Weintraub said the legal team was “devastated” by the news.
“We trust that a thorough investigation into his death will be conducted,” she said.
No additional details regarding the circumstances of his death were immediately available.
Arrest at Miami International Airport
Knezevich had been held without bond since his arrest in May 2024 at Miami International Airport, following a flight from Serbia.
His estranged wife, originally from Colombia and a naturalized U.S. citizen living in Fort Lauderdale, had traveled to Madrid amid a contentious divorce. She vanished shortly after arriving.
Allegations of premeditated violence in Madrid
According to a federal indictment filed in November, Knezevich allegedly traveled from South Florida to Spain “with the intent to kill, injure, harass, and intimidate” his wife, ultimately committing a violent act that resulted in her death.
Investigators said surveillance footage captured a man resembling Knezevich wearing a motorcycle helmet and disabling a security camera outside Henao Knezevich’s Madrid apartment. The man was seen leaving about an hour later with a suitcase.
Prosecutors also alleged Knezevich was recorded at a local hardware store, paying cash for duct tape and the same brand of spray paint used in the attack on the security camera.
Stolen plates and suspicious rental car activity
Police found that stolen license plates recovered in Madrid were linked to areas near a motorcycle shop—where a helmet matching the one used was purchased—and near Ana Maria Henao Knezevich’s apartment building.
Hours after the helmeted man was seen leaving, a Peugeot matching Knezevich’s rental car, fitted with stolen plates, was captured passing through a toll booth outside Madrid. Due to the car’s heavily tinted windows, the driver was not visible.
Authorities said Knezevich had rented the Peugeot in Belgrade days earlier. When he eventually returned it, the car had nearly 4,800 extra miles, its windows had been darkened, identifying stickers removed, and there were signs the license plates had been taken off and reattached.
Fake messages sent from the Ana Knezevich’s phone
The morning after Ana Maria Henao Knezevich disappeared, prosecutors said Knezevich contacted a Colombian woman he met through a dating app, asking her to translate two messages into “perfect Colombian Spanish.”
Those identical messages were later sent from the Ana Knezevich’s cellphone to her friends, claiming she had run off with a man she had just met—a scenario her friends said she would have never entertained.
Knezevich pleaded not guilty, maintained innocence
Throughout the case, Knezevich’s attorneys asserted that he had been in Serbia—more than 1,600 miles away—at the time of his wife’s disappearance.
Knezevich pleaded not guilty to all charges and continued to proclaim his innocence, the Miami Herald reported in Dec. 2024.
International attention and wrongful death lawsuit
The disappearance of Ana Maria Henao Knezevich drew international headlines, with law enforcement agencies from several countries collaborating on the investigation.
Earlier this year, her family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against David Knezevich.
