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Details remain unclear how Matthew Flores took possession of Gary Levin's car

Flores was wanted in Hardee County homicide before arrest in North Carolina
Posted at 5:55 PM, Feb 07, 2023
and last updated 2023-02-07 19:30:02-05

FORT PIERCE, Fla. — WPTV is learning more about the whereabouts of the man last seen driving the car of Palm Beach Gardens Lyft driver Gary Levin.

Matthew Flores, 35, has not been charged in connection to Levin's disappearance, but WPTV learned new information about where he was before he crashed Levin's car.

Some new details emerged in an arrest affidavit of Stephanie Velgara, Flores' girlfriend, who police say was an accessory after the fact to a homicide Flores is accused of committing in Hardee County.

That killing occurred in the town of Wauchula in southwest Florida on Jan. 24.

RELATED: Timeline of the disappearance of Gary Levin

At the time, investigators said Flores stole the victim's blue Nissan Altima and switched the registration tag with another vehicle.

Gary Levin of Palm Beach Gardens was last seen Jan. 30, 2023.
Gary Levin of Palm Beach Gardens was last seen Jan. 30, 2023.

A few days later, the Altima was found abandoned in the Orlando area, sometime before Velgara's arrest on Jan. 28.

The only other official location for Flores occurred on Feb. 2, when he was found driving Levin's Kia Stinger in Rutherford County, North Carolina, after a crash. Gainesville police said Levin's license plate for his Kia was picked up by camera readers on Feb. 1.

It's unclear where Flores got into Levin's car or whether he was ever in the vicinity of Okeechobee where a body was found Saturday.

Levin's girlfriend told WPTV that he kept a gun under the dashboard of his car for protection.

Flores is still being held in North Carolina on a $2 million bond, awaiting an extradition hearing scheduled for Feb. 22.

Thomas Bakkedahl, the state attorney who serves Okeechobee County, said Tuesday that Flores is a person of interest in Levin's disappearance.