Amsterdam murder suspect denies killing his partner as court extends pretrial detention
A 39-year-old Amsterdam man accused of murdering his 40-year-old partner denied any involvement in her death Wednesday. A court extended his pretrial detention and ordered him to undergo psychiatric observation despite his objections. V. is also known for participating in the reality dating shows Lang Leve de Liefde and Iris en de 12 Dates. His partner was an ABN AMRO employee.
Clen V., who is charged with murder, made his first public statement since his arrest on April 8 after previously invoking his right to remain silent. He told the court in Amsterdam he was innocent and asked to be released so he could return to his daughter and mourn his partner.
"I think it's bizarre," V. said, according to the RTL. "It's really very difficult. I'm living a nightmare right now. As far as I'm concerned, the facts are very clear. I had nothing to do with my partner's death. Absolutely nothing. That was already clear at the start of the investigation. And the further the investigation progresses, the clearer that will become."
He added, "I don't understand at all why I'm here. Why am I here? ... I want to ask the court emphatically: look at the facts. Release me. I had absolutely nothing to do with my partner's death."
The court denied his request. It extended his detention until the next hearing on Sept. 23. The presiding judge said many questions remain unanswered.
The judge added that while V. has the right to remain silent, that decision has consequences because investigators must rely on complex forensic examinations.
The court also ordered V. to be admitted to the Pieter Baan Center for psychiatric observation against his wishes. The center will assess his mental condition.
The woman was found dead March 26 in the couple's apartment on Koninginneweg in Amsterdam-Zuid, where they lived with their young daughter. She was discovered in a bathtub with the water still running at 54 degrees Celsius. Investigators believe she died the previous evening, March 25.
Prosecutors said the hot water complicated efforts by forensic pathologists to determine the cause of death, which remains unknown.
According to prosecutors, V. was at home when his partner died. He remained there with their daughter until 9:15 a.m. March 26. Prosecutors said he claimed he did not notice his partner had not slept beside him because he assumed she had already left for work.
The alarm was raised after the woman, an ABN AMRO employee, failed to report for work. She did not respond to messages, and V. also could not be reached by phone. Prosecutors described that as highly unusual. Colleagues went to the apartment but received no response. Police later entered the home using a key provided by the family's babysitter, who had arrived to pick up the couple's daughter.
Investigators found the victim's phone in an apparently unused bed, which was last unlocked at 9:21 p.m. March 25. Prosecutors said that an alarm was supposed to go off on the phone during the night. They allege V. most likely switched it off manually.
