By admin 
TEMPE, AZ (AZFamily) — The case of a rare bottle of liquor valued at $4,000 stolen from an upscale Tempe restaurant last week has taken a surprising turn.
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Tempe police said Wednesday that one of the people who turned themselves in for the crime is no longer a suspect.
Channel Miller, 34, and her husband, Matthew Steve, 32, had surrendered to police Tuesday, but now, investigators said, after receiving evidence, they said Miller wasn’t involved in the heist.
Steve was booked into jail on a felony charge of theft, and he and Miller have since been released.
Police said a woman and Steve were dining at the popular Three Thirty Three restaurant, located off the Loop 202 Red Mountain and Scottsdale Road, on May 4 and started acting suspiciously after ordering appetizers.
Detectives said a woman swiped a 750-ml bottle of Louis XIII cognac while Steve was the lookout. The theft was caught on camera.
The pair then reportedly left with the bottle in an SUV. Court documents said the SUV was registered to Miller.
Court documents said Steve called the restaurant after seeing himself on the news and told restaurant staff he had nothing to do with the theft. The caller ID showed the phone number belonged to Miller, police said, and the reservation was made by a woman using the name Matthew Steve.
Court documents said when police called the phone number used for the reservation, a woman answered and gave a different name. A law enforcement database showed the number belonged to a family member of Steve.
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Police later called the number Steve had used to call the restaurant and spoke to Steve, who said he was at the restaurant and on a date with a woman he had just met, court documents said.
Steve later reportedly said he hadn’t seen her since. He later mentioned he would try to return the bottle but was out of state and suddenly hung up.
Investigators said the theft may be linked to the Romanian Travelers criminal group.
Steve also faces a misdemeanor charge of facilitation. He was released on his own recognizance.
Anyone with additional information about the case is asked to call Tempe police at 480-350-8311.
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