A man has been arrested in central Dublin in connection with a hotel robbery earlier in the week. Gardai believe he is the con man depicted in some sections of the media as a gentleman jewel thief wanted in many parts of the world.
Detectives believe a break-in at Merrion Hotel in which jewellery, credit cards and cash was stolen was carried out by Juan Carlos Guzman Betancourt - a 29-year-old jailed for three-and-a-half years in Britain for stealing jewellery worth £150,000, cash and other items over six years.
But on June 6th the Colombian national left an open prison in Kent for a doctor's appointment and did not return.
He is believed to have netted millions from raids on hotel rooms in more than ten countries over a number of years, after beginning his crime spree in the mid-1990s.
He is said to model himself on jewel thief Raffles and on Leonardo DiCaprio's character in the Hollywood movie Catch Me If You Can. He is thought to have as many as ten bogus identities.
Uniformed gardai captured the Colombian national in Talbot Street this afternoon.