New Twists In Linda Stein Murder Case

By Dan Rattiner

An arrest has been made in the Linda Stein murder case. There has been talk of mood altering drugs. And there is no murder weapon yet.

Charged as her killer is Natavia Lowery, a 26-year-old Brooklyn woman who worked as one of Linda Stein's assistants for the past four months. Natavia is African American and a former office worker who, four months ago, answered an ad to replace a previous assistant named Evelyn, who Linda Stein had fired because she dared to disagree with her about a business decision.

Linda Stein was 62 years old, a prominent and popular real estate broker who had dealings with a wide variety of Hamptons celebrities and billionaires. She bought and sold homes in the Hamptons and apartments in Manhattan, some worth more than $20 million, for such people as Steven Spielberg, Sting, Billy Joel, Christie Brinkley and Elton John. She was called the "Broker to the Stars." Earlier in life, she had been a music promoter that had, it is said, single-handedly founded the punk rock movement in the 1960s and 1970s.

And so it was that this community was shocked to find out that she was killed on October 30 in her Fifth Avenue apartment located at 975 Fifth Avenue at 78th Street, facing Central Park. Her murder took place at one in the afternoon. She died from being repeatedly struck in the head and back of the neck with a heavy serrated object. There was no forced entry. Nothing was taken. There were no signs of a struggle. And the door to the apartment was found unlocked, although family and friends say that Linda Stein always left the door unlocked, relying on her doormen down below. Her body was found lying face down on the rug in the living room by her daughter Samantha at 10:30 p.m. that evening. Police said that there was little doubt she was killed by someone who knew her.

Natavia confessed to the crime last Thursday, her confession videotaped at the police station, and she said that Linda Stein, who is notoriously known for being hard to work for, had abused her so badly that day that she had snapped and murdered her by hitting her with a metal object used in yoga training. After it was over, frightened, but still upset, she left the apartment, but not before taking a credit card belonging to her boss, which she used at a nearby ATM to withdraw $800.

Complicating matters is the revelation, made on Saturday by Linda Stein's grown daughter Samantha, that Linda had been diagnosed two weeks before with brain cancer and had been taking heavy doses of drugs that altered her behavior. The Stein family lawyer, Eddie Hayes, concurred with this statement.

This whole story is beginning to look like a tragically awful sequence of events.

Ms. Lowery, friends of hers say, is mild mannered and rarely prone to anger, much less to the kind of anger that might result in her killing someone. It seems she was initially fascinated by Linda Stein's demeanor, considering all her responsibilities and accomplishments. The pay was good. On the other hand, Linda Stein was an abusive person to all who worked for her, by all accounts, in the same way that the Publisher of Vogue, Anna Wintour, abuses her assistants, as she was portrayed in the movie The Devil Wears Prada.

On this fateful day, if we are to believe her daughter and the family lawyer, Stein was in a particularly foul mood, largely because of the drugs she was taking. Lowery happened to be there. Lowery testified that the matter escalated when at her boss' request she was retrieving Stein's email and was not doing it fast enough for Stein's satisfaction. Stein berated her, she said, and then blew marijuana smoke in her face - she smoked it to relieve pain - then cursed at her and made racially inappropriate remarks. Her anger gone, she then offered to buy Lowery lunch. When Lowery declined, saying that she did not need Ms. Stein to be buying her lunch because she had money in the bank and could use her own money, Ms. Stein picked up this yoga device and shook it at her, then replied, according to Lowery, well you are one of the few black people I have encountered who can save money.

Lowery said she then lost it. She grabbed at the yoga stick, struggled with her, and then took it away from her and began hitting her with it - Lowery is 5 foot 3, Linda Stein is 5 foot - and soon beat her to the ground, where Linda Stein remained, bleeding and not moving. Lowery then took the credit card, picked up her gym bag, and left the apartment. It was 1:30 in the afternoon. And her leaving was caught on the security camera tape.

Having heard this story, many people who knew Linda Stein - she had many friends in spite of her abusive behavior toward those that she employed - said that she might have a temper but she was no racist. Things just seemed to have gotten out of hand. And perhaps the bad news and the heavy drugs she was taking had something to do with it.

Natavia S. Lowery, 26, has been charged with second-degree murder and is being held without bail. She now says she did NOT kill Linda Stein. And her lawyer says the police used illegal tactics to obtain her confession.

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