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Tuesday, August 6
 
Jury decides Duran's belts were stolen

Associated Press

MIAMI -- Roberto Duran had five championship belts stolen from him and sold without his permission, a jury decided Tuesday.

The 51-year-old former boxer testified during the civil trial that his estranged brother-in-law stole the belts during a staged robbery at their Panama City home and sold them while Duran was living in Miami in 1993.

The buyer, antiques dealer Luis Gonzalez Baez, claimed Duran and his wife authorized the brother-in-law to sell the belts and household furniture to raise money when the family was having financial problems. He said he bought the belts for $3,000 along with most of Duran's household items.

He was arrested by the FBI for trying to sell Duran's belts for $2,000 to a sports memorabilia dealer in Long Island in 1995. The charges were dropped after he showed receipts that Duran didn't sign.

If there is no appeal, U.S. District Judge William Hoeveler told the Duran family that the belts would be returned in about 30 days.

"It's been 10 years since the Duran family had the belts in their home, and we're one step closer to having the belts back home,'' Duran attorney Antonio Gonzalez said.

Duran testified but flew home to Panama before the trial ended, and was not in the courtroom Tuesday.




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