Alleged Leader of Jewel Robbery Ring : Suspect in Bullock’s Fur Heist Acquitted

After a 17-day trial, a Southwest Los Angeles man who prosecutors and police contend is the leader of a nationwide jewel robbery ring was acquitted Monday of participating in the armed robbery of a Bullock’s department store in Century City.

Winzel Bryant, 27, was found not guilty by a Santa Monica Superior Court jury after a trial in which his former girlfriend testified that he and three other men were involved in a holdup that netted a number of furs from Bullock’s last June.

The ex-girlfriend, Ivory Diane Stowe, 28, was originally a defendant with Bryant but pleaded guilty to a charge of robbery and agreed to testify against him. A third defendant, Quinn Walker, also pleaded guilty, while a fourth, Demetrious Dansby, was acquitted with Bryant.

Jewel Robberies

According to documents filed in court, Stowe told Los Angeles police and FBI agents last summer that Bryant masterminded a small group of robbers who traveled throughout the country holding up jewelry stores during the last two years. The robberies included the September, 1984, heist in which $500,000 worth of expensive rings and watches were taken from a Neiman-Marcus store in Washington.

According to sources close to the investigation of the Neiman-Marcus robbery, Stowe has testified before a federal grand jury in Washington, where the U.S. attorney’s office hopes to obtain indictments of Bryant and a Los Angeles jeweler, Saied Aframian, who Stowe claims was the robbery ring’s “fence.”

Other Arrests

Stowe’s testimony represents prosecutors’ prime evidence against Bryant and Aframian, the sources said. Two other alleged members of the ring were arrested in Los Angeles in October after witnesses to the Neiman-Marcus robbery identified them, FBI agents said.

The jury in Judge Harry Mock Jr.’s Santa Monica court deliberated three days before returning its verdict. Bryant’s attorney, Barry Hammond, said he thinks the jury acquitted Bryant because they found Stowe’s description of his alleged involvement in the Bullock’s robbery and other activities inaccurate and inconsistent. Hammond said he hopes Monday’s verdict will dampen the interest of the U.S. attorney’s office in prosecuting Bryant.

The prosecutor, Deputy Dist. Atty. Richard Harbinger, said he was surprised by the verdict but declined further comment.