Jeweler Murdered in NY Diamond District

In what looks like a mafia style murder hit, 46 year old Eduard Nektalov, a diamond district jeweler recently indicted in a money laundering case, was shot in the back of his head and killed in Midtown Manhattan.

The attacker, described as an olive skinned man dressed in black, approached Nektalov on the busy Avenue of the Americas at 47th around 7:20 p.m. and without saying a word shot Nektalov from behind three times, disappearing into the crowd after killing him.

Nektalov was one of 11 NYC jewelers arrested last June for alleged involvement in a money laundering scam for Colombian drug dealers. According to Federal prosecutors, the suspects made ordinary daily objects such as belt buckles and wrenches from gold and painted them to dupe customs inspectors, as a way to smuggle drug profits out to Colombia.

The case shook the diamond district at the time. In January one of the suspects, Jamie Ross, pleaded guilty to charges of money laundering and failing to file currency transaction reports for large business cash deals.

According to prosecutors, the defendants received cash and diamonds – proceeds generated from drug deals – in return for creating the gold-made objects.

Nektalov, scheduled to go to trial on July 12, might have been considering cooperating with authorities on the case, which might have been the motive for the murder. However, NYC Police detectives are not ruling out yet other motives.

"It may carry us that way down the road, but we're also looking at some squabbling with acquaintances," a police official told the New York Times.

City Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly told reporters at a news conference last night, "It's certainly possible that it could be related to the diamond district," adding: "I would wait and see what the motive is. It could have been a personal relationship between the individual and the victim".