Manhattan gold thief nabbed in Guayaquil

The man who swiped a bucket of gold flakes from an armored truck in Midtown Manhattan has been busted in Guayaquil by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents and local police.

Gold thief makes off with the loot.

Julio Nivelo grabbed the 86-pound pail of gold from the truck when the driver left it unattended on W. 48th St. in September, New York police said.

The powdery bullion is estimated to be worth $1.6 million.

According to the police in Guayaquil, Nivelo, 53, was nabbed on Wednesday as he walked along a city street following a two-month manhunt in the South American country.

Police said that Ecuador’s Attorney General is now handling the case. It’s unknown if extradition proceedings have been started.

Nivelo, who has at least five different aliases including Luis Toledo and David Vargas, had been living in New Jersey.

He had reportedly been deported to Ecuador on four separate occasions since 1994 for for other robberies.