Personal assistant arrested in Linda Stein murder case

[Herman Munster]

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime_file/2007/11/09/2007-11-09_personal_assistant_arrested_in_linda_ste.html

Linda Stein's personal assistant was arrested Friday after she confessed in the bloody beating of the punk pioneer and Realtor to the stars.

Natavia Lowery, 26, who told police she was subjected racist slurs from Stein, bludgeoned her boss with a weighted yoga-stick used for stretching exercises.

She finally snapped after Stein blew marijuana smoke in her face and told her to hurry up, Police Commissioner Ray Kelly announced in a press conference Friday afternoon.

Stein, whose real estate clients included high-profile celebrities such as Angelina Jolie, Sting, and Steven Spielberg, was discovered on Oct. 30 in her posh 5th Avenue apartment lying in a pool of blood.

The grisly killing touched off an investigation that included many in Stein's inner circle, including an Italian former lover, upscale pot dealers and a former assistant described as a handsome Romeo type, as well as contractors who were working on the roof of her swanky building on the Upper East Side.

[MADem]

1. Well, this bit ain't helpful to the defendant...

Lowery handled the computer work, setting up meetings, and appointments and handling some of the financial details. Lowery was arrested in Brooklyn last December on misdemeanor identity theft charges.

Prosecutors said she stole the identity of a high school friend to set up $300 credit lines at T-Mobile and Target and used the fake identity to buy thousands of dollars in furniture in Virginia Beach.

Police questioned Lowery soon after the murder but released her. Some of Lowery's relatives insisted she was innocent and had cooperated with police.

Several of Stein's friends and relatives said she had no idea Lowery had a rap sheet.