http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/01/24/europe/EU-GEN-Belgium-Sky-Diver-Murder.php
Belgian police investigating sky diver's death as murder
The Associated Press
Published: January 24, 2007
International Herald Tribune
BRUSSELS, Belgium: Police are investigating a high-altitude murder mystery involving a skydiver who fell to her death in an apparent "crime of passion" fight over a lover, prosecutors said Wednesday.
Els Van Doren, 37, fell 4,000 meters (13,000 feet) to her death last November after her parachute and emergency chute failed to open.
Police believe someone tampered with her parachute and have opened a murder investigation, said Michel Zegers from the Tongeren prosecutor's office.
Fellow skydiver Els Clottemans, 22, was detained for questioning last week and is the "prime suspect" in the investigation, Zegers said. No charges have yet been filed.
Investigators believe Clottemans and Van Doren, who belonged to the same parachute club and were friends, also dated the same man, a Dutch national identified as "Marcel."
"I believe we can call this a crime of passion," Zegers said.
A court is set for Feb. 16 in the eastern city of Tongeren to asses the evidence.
Police have video footage of the fateful jump — taken by Van Doren herself as she tried desperately and futilely to open her parachute.
Van Doren had jumped from a plane with three others, including Clottemans and the Dutch boyfriend. The plan was to make a free-fall formation, something that had gone right many times.
But after her parachutes failed to work, Van Doren crashed to her death at 200 kph (130 mph) near Opglabbeek, a small town in central Belgium.
At her funeral, some 1,000 people heard her sister deliver a bitter eulogy. "You did all you could during that final jump to save yourself," she was quoted as saying in the Belgian press. "But someone did not want you to live."
Police said someone with extensive skydiving expertise had tampered with Van Doren's parachutes.
Clottemans initially escaped attention during a first round of police questioning. She became a suspect in December when she attempted suicide hours before she was to make a second statement to police.
Clottemans has a history of psychological problems.
Belgian police investigating sky diver's death as murder
The Associated Press
Published: January 24, 2007
International Herald Tribune
BRUSSELS, Belgium: Police are investigating a high-altitude murder mystery involving a skydiver who fell to her death in an apparent "crime of passion" fight over a lover, prosecutors said Wednesday.
Els Van Doren, 37, fell 4,000 meters (13,000 feet) to her death last November after her parachute and emergency chute failed to open.
Police believe someone tampered with her parachute and have opened a murder investigation, said Michel Zegers from the Tongeren prosecutor's office.
Fellow skydiver Els Clottemans, 22, was detained for questioning last week and is the "prime suspect" in the investigation, Zegers said. No charges have yet been filed.
Investigators believe Clottemans and Van Doren, who belonged to the same parachute club and were friends, also dated the same man, a Dutch national identified as "Marcel."
News reports say Clottemans killed Van Doren in a jealous rage after learning Van Doren had an affair with her boyfriend.
"I believe we can call this a crime of passion," Zegers said.
A court is set for Feb. 16 in the eastern city of Tongeren to asses the evidence.
Police have video footage of the fateful jump — taken by Van Doren herself as she tried desperately and futilely to open her parachute.
Van Doren had jumped from a plane with three others, including Clottemans and the Dutch boyfriend. The plan was to make a free-fall formation, something that had gone right many times.
But after her parachutes failed to work, Van Doren crashed to her death at 200 kph (130 mph) near Opglabbeek, a small town in central Belgium.
At her funeral, some 1,000 people heard her sister deliver a bitter eulogy. "You did all you could during that final jump to save yourself," she was quoted as saying in the Belgian press. "But someone did not want you to live."
Police said someone with extensive skydiving expertise had tampered with Van Doren's parachutes.
Clottemans initially escaped attention during a first round of police questioning. She became a suspect in December when she attempted suicide hours before she was to make a second statement to police.
Clottemans has a history of psychological problems.
