Rio de Janeiro, Brazil – The estranged husband of a murdered multimillionaire Manhattan art dealer is facing extradition to Brazil on suspicion of ordering his murder, according to sources. Daniel Garcia Carrera, 53, is alleged to have paid for the murder of his estranged husband, Brent Sikkema, 75, who was fatally stabbed at his winter home in Rio de Janeiro in January. A judge in the city has ruled on the extradition, stating that Brazil’s justice department must make a formal request to the Department of Justice in Washington DC. Garcia Carrera, who was arrested in New York following an FBI raid and is currently out on bail, is believed to have been planning to flee the country.
The extradition request was formally made in a ruling on March 25 by Rio judge Tula Correa de Mello. A hearing for Garcia Carrera has been scheduled for June 3 in Rio, according to court documents. Sikkema was found dead in his Rio home on January 15, just one day before he was due to return to New York City. A Cuban national living in Sao Paulo, Alejandro Triana Prevez, has been charged with his murder. Prevez told authorities that Carrera ordered the hit and promised him $200,000 for carrying out the crime.
Rio police released surveillance footage that allegedly shows Prevez surveilling the victim’s residence for 14 hours prior to the murder. Garcia Carrera, who now has custody of the couple’s 13-year-old son, Lucas, was arrested on charges of lying on a passport application for the teenager. Despite federal prosecutors opposing his release on bail, Garcia Carrera was granted a $1 million bond and must wear an ankle bracelet. The murder victim, Brent Sikkema, had removed Garcia Carrera from his will in May 2022, two months after his estranged husband had filed for divorce in Manhattan State Supreme Court. The divorce had not been finalized at the time of Sikkema’s death.
Sikkema’s will leaves $1 million in trust to another former lover and the bulk of his estate, including a $2.8 million apartment in Chelsea and his interest in his art gallery, to his son. However, Lucas will only be able to access half of his inheritance when he turns 30, with the remainder becoming available when he reaches 40. In addition to his New York holdings, Sikkema owned multiple homes in Cuba and Rio de Janeiro, as well as a property on Fire Island held in trust for Garcia Carrera.
Fabiana Marques, a defense attorney for Garcia Carrera, said she would fight any attempt to extradite her client, emphasizing that he is now solely responsible for their teenage son.