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What started as a seemingly ordinary evening at home took a horrifying turn for 63-year-old George Levin. After having dinner with his mother and sister, he went downstairs to his basement apartment—completely unaware that his life was about to end in a brutal and shocking crime.
Hours later, his sister made a chilling discovery: Levin was bound with duct tape, gagged, and left to die. The two men accused of his murder had allegedly met him through a dating app, but their intentions went far beyond companionship. Authorities say they stole thousands of dollars using his credit card before being tracked down—one of them even wearing a government-issued ankle monitor at the time of the crime.
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Who were these men, and how did police unravel the mystery behind Levin’s tragic death? Keep reading to learn the full, disturbing details of this case.
Illinois authorities have announced the cause of death for George Levin, who was found dead in the basement where he lived in his family’s home last month.
Levin, 63, died from “multiple injuries” in his family’s Chicago home on Jan. 26, the Cook County Bureau of Administration tells PEOPLE. His manner of death has been ruled a homicide.
Chicago police arrested Geiderwuin Bello Morales, 21, and Jefferson Ubilla-Delgado, 29, on Jan. 29 in connection with Levin’s death, the department previously said in a statement.
Prosecutors say Levin met the pair on a dating app, the Chicago Sun-Times, NBC Chicago and CBS News previously reported.
Just hours prior to their scheduled meeting, Levin and his sister had dinner with their mother upstairs in the same house, according to an incident report obtained by PEOPLE.
Levin’s sister told investigators that a little after he went downstairs after dinner, she heard a noise from the basement and came down to check, prosecutors said during a recent court hearing, per CBS News. She said she encountered Bello Morales who allegedly told her that Levin was fine, saying he would ask Levin to call her.
The sister said that later, she went down again, and found Levin tied up with duct-tape, gagged with a sock in his mouth and partially nude, CBS News and WGN-TV reported, citing investigators’ accounts.
The suspects were allegedly identified through security footage making purchases using Levin’s credit card; they had allegedly spent $4,000 on Amazon purchases, the Chicago Sun-Times and WGN-TV reported, citing investigators.
Police eventually tracked them down using Levin’s phone as well as a Immigration and Customs Enforcement-issued ankle monitor Ubilla-Delgado was wearing, CBS News and NBC Chicago reported. He is a native of Venezuela.
Levin was an interior designer, according to his LinkedIn profile.
In an online obituary, his loved ones shared that he had a sharp wit with a laugh that could “light up an event.”
“Never forget dancing with him at many a club. We shared many interests, art, movies, concerts, culture,” wrote an old friend from college.
His family has urged anyone interested to donate to the LGBTQ health and wellness organization The Center on Halsted (centeronhalsted.org) or any other LGBTQ organization in his honor.