Police believe that the American's killer acted alone and that the gallery owner was unconscious when he was killed

The Rio Civil Police believe that Cuban Alejandro Triana Prevez, identified as responsible for the death of American gallerist Brent Sikkema, acted alone on the day of the crime, in the early hours of last Sunday (14).

According to forensics, the victim was already unconscious when he suffered around 18 stab wounds. He was found by his lawyer and friend, Simone Nunes, with his face covered with a cloth, in the house she owns in Jardim Botânico, in the South Zone of Rio.

Investigations by the Capital Homicide Police Station (DHC) also reveal that the suspect already knew Sikkema and her husband, who is also Cuban. Sikkema and Prevez met between July and August last year. The suspect was arrested this Thursday (18) at a gas station in Uberaba, Minas Gerais. About 3 thousand dollars were found on him.

The police's main line of investigation is that the crime was a robbery, robbery followed by death. But no hypothesis has been ruled out. Around 40 thousand dollars were taken from the property.

Monitoring cameras at the Botanical Garden analyzed by the Civil Police indicate that Brent Sikkema's death was premeditated. Images from equipment from the security company Gabriel show the suspect's car driving around the region where the property is located around 14 hours before the crime.

The police are also investigating the involvement of the American's ex-husband in the crime. The man, who is said to be in the process of divorcing the gallery owner, is in Cuba. Brent Sikkema was going through a million-dollar fight to get a divorce and be able to see his son again.

The American owned Sikkema Jenkins & Co., a contemporary art gallery in New York, United States, which exhibits works such as paintings, drawings, installations, photographs and sculptures.

The gallerist began working in art galleries in 1971, as director of exhibitions at the Visual Studies Workshop, in the city of Rochester, also in New York. He opened his first gallery in 1976. The space, located in the city of Boston, focused on photographs.

Later, Sikkema moved to New York and opened, in 1991, a contemporary gallery called Wooster Gardens, which operated in the SoHo neighborhood, known for its artistic profile.

Michael Jenkins, who would later become Sikema's partner, worked at this gallery as a director. In 1999, the space moved to the Chelsea neighborhood and was renamed Galeria Brent Sikkema. Shortly thereafter, Jenkins became a partner with Sikkema and the gallery was renamed Sikkema Jenkins & Co.