Jewel Theft Conviction Dismissed on Technicality

Ruling that charges were not officially filed until after the statute of limitations expired, a judge threw out the conviction Friday of a jewelry dealer who was found guilty of stealing a 6.76-carat Burmese ruby.

Van Nuys Superior Court Judge Kathryne Ann Stoltz granted a motion to dismiss the grand theft conviction of Ali Reza Paravar, who had faced a possible prison term of up to five years.

Even though Stoltz said Paravar was “clearly guilty” of the offense, she said the California Penal Code left no choice but to grant the motion.

“I’ve been through hell,” Paravar said as he left the courtroom. Paravar, a 42-year-old Woodland Hills man, and his attorney, Jerry Kaplan, declined further comment.

“I think the ruling is unfortunate because it results in a situation where justice was not done in this case,” said Deputy Dist. Atty. Eduards Abele .

A jury convicted Paravar last month of stealing the stone--valued at between $500,000 and $1 million--from German gem trader Peter Morlock.

Prosecutors convinced a jury that the theft occurred after Morlock gave the ruby on consignment to Ron Levi, another downtown jewelry dealer. Levi then gave the stone to Paravar. When Morlock asked that the pinky fingertip-sized ruby be returned, Paravar refused, saying that Levy owed him $400,000, authorities said.

Morlock then took the matter to the Los Angeles police, who told him the matter appeared to be a business dispute and not a criminal matter.

Paravar kept the stone for most of the next three years, according to his own testimony.

He was arrested with four other men last summer. The stone, known as the “Mona Lisa of rubies,” was found in Paravar’s pocket.

Authorities alleged Paravar and the other men were involved in a scheme to extort $360,000 from Morlock in exchange for the ruby.

When the matter finally came to trial, the case against one defendant had already been dismissed. During the trial, Stoltz threw out charges against a second defendant, saying there was not enough evidence to support a conviction.

The six-man, six-woman jury that convicted Paravar acquitted another man on charges of receiving stolen property.

A mistrial was declared in the case of the remaining defendant, 46-year-old Rasekh Uddin Siddiqui, when the panel split 8 to 4 in favor of guilt on charges of receiving stolen property. Prosecutors have announced they will retry Siddiqui, who left Southern California after his arrest and is currently living in Tennessee.

In Paravar’s case, the question before the judge involved when the prosecution began.

Paravar successfully argued that the three-year statute of limitations ended Sept. 24, 1993--more than two months before Paravar was charged in Superior Court.

Prosecutors said they would review the ruling to determine if the judge’s ruling should be appealed.