MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – David Knezevich, the estranged husband of Ana Maria Knezevich Henao, who vanished in Madrid, Spain, in early February, has been arrested, authorities confirmed Monday.
The FBI announced the arrest of David Knezevich, 36, of Fort Lauderdale, on Monday, “for his alleged involvement in the kidnapping of a U.S. Citizen in Madrid, Spain, on or about February 2, 2024.”
Authorities confirmed Knezevich’s arrest “was made without incident by the Diplomatic Security Service and the FBI at Miami International Airport on Saturday.”
Prior to his arrest, Knezevich had not been officially named a person of interest or a suspect, and no arrests had been made in the case of his missing ex-partner.
However, that changed when jail records confirmed he’d been arrested and booked into jail in Miami-Dade County.
Jail records show Knezevich has been placed on a U.S. Marshals hold for kidnapping, pending a federal hearing where a court will review the assets he’d use to post his bail.
In previous reports, family members and friends of his missing estranged wife have said he left for Serbia back in January.
According to investigators, Henao, 40, of Fort Lauderdale, has not been seen or heard from since February, when she went missing in Madrid, Spain.
Authorities say she traveled to the country in December after her 13-year marriage with Knezevich started to falter.
Henao’s loved ones told Local 10 News in February that she was supposed to meet a friend to take the train to Barcelona but never showed up at the station, prompting an international missing person’s case.
Adding to the mystery, around the time of Henao’s disappearance, police say someone spray-painted the lenses of a couple of security cameras at the apartment building she was staying in and disabled the cameras at the building’s entrance.
Knezevich’s attorney, Ken Padowitz, told Local 10 that his client had been in contact with Spanish authorities while he was in Serbia. He declined to speak on his Knezevich’s behalf following Monday’s federal court appearance.
Following Knezevich’s arrest, Sanna Rameau, a friend of Henao told Local 10 News Monday, “The only thing I can say right now is that I am happy that there has been an arrest in this case, and we are hoping that this next chapter will bring justice and we find answers about what has happened to Ana.”
The FBI confirmed Knezevich is in federal custody, and they said he is expected back in court on Friday afternoon for a pre-trial detention hearing.
Authorities said because this is an ongoing investigation, no further information will be released at this time.
Anyone with information about this or any FBI investigation is urged to call 1-800-CALL-FBI or visit tips.fbi.gov.