Man Convicted of Plotting Killing of NYC Art Dealer During Divorce Dispute

The estranged husband of a prominent New York City art dealer was convicted on May 22 for hiring a hitman to kill him in Brazil. The defendant is facing a mandatory life sentence after the art dealer was found dead in January 2024.

The 55-year-old man, Daniel Sikkema, was convicted on May 22 for hiring a hitman to kill a prominent New York City art dealer. The victim has been identified as 75-year-old Brent Sikkema, who was found fatally stabbed in his Rio de Janeiro townhouse in 2024. Sikkema is now facing a mandatory sentence of life in prison.

Sikkema, who was both a U.S. and Cuban citizen and lived in New York, was arrested in April 2024. He was convicted in federal court in Manhattan of charges including murder-for-hire conspiracy resulting in death. The alleged hitman whom Sikkema hired was arrested in Brazil and remains in custody.

“Amid contentious divorce proceedings with his former husband, Daniel Sikkema used a burner phone line to callously order the killing of his husband,” Manhattan U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton said.

Clayton described Brent Sikkema’s killings as a “senseless, cold-blooded murder” and said the verdict brings a “meaningful measure of justice.”

Sikkema’s lawyer, Florian Miedel, said they were disappointed in the verdict and plan to appeal. “Daniel is staying strong and hopes to be vindicated in the end,” Miedeal said.

Brent Sikkema had amassed a multimillion-dollar estate and owned a Manhattan contemporary art gallery that became Sikkema Malloy Jenkins, which, according to its website, had represented international artists like Kara Walker, Vik Muniz, and Arturo Herrera for nearly 30 years.

Daniel Sikkema was in frequent contact with the alleged hitman before and after the killing, according to the prosecutor's statement in court during the trial hearing. Assistant US Attorney Nicholas Pavlis told the jury in an opening statement that Daniel Sikkema had funneled over $10,000 to the man and had promised him more money in the future.

At the same time, Pavlis said, Sikkema bragged to others that he was going to get more money from his spouse’s death than he would have gotten from a divorce. He and Brent Sikkema had a teenage son.

“After his husband was brutally stabbed and killed, the defendant tried to cover his tracks and cash in,” Pavlis said. Miedel told the jury in an opening statement that the case was built on circumstantial evidence and that there was no evidence to prove the guilt of his client.

“Life is messy. The truth is not always obvious,” Miedel said.