The 39-year-old woman who was shot dead in Gouda on Tuesday was reportedly hiding in a women’s shelter. She was presumably there out of fear of her ex-partner, the suspect. That’s according to multiple sources speaking to RTL Nieuws and De Telegraaf.
The woman was shot dead in Gouda on Tuesday afternoon. The suspect, her 53-year-old ex-partner from Eindhoven, fled the scene. He was found seriously injured in Scheveningen in the evening, where he died of his injuries. Police suspect he took his own life.
According to social media posts presumably written by the man, the two had been together for about nine years. They had two children together but had been separated for some time. His Facebook posts show that the man was furious with the woman because he had reportedly not seen his children for weeks.
The man wrote that he suspected his ex-partner was in a women’s shelter with their children. Such a house is a safe and anonymous location where someone who is dealing with (serious) domestic violence or threats can go into hiding. The man asked on social media for information about the woman’s whereabouts.
The Public Prosecution Service (OM) of East Brabant confirms to NU.nl that the woman reported her ex-partner on June 2. He was arrested for possession of weapons and mistreatment of his ex-partner. He was brought before the investigating judge on June 5 and then held for two weeks for possession of weapons.
The Public Prosecution Service is working on drawing up a timeline, together with the police. “This way we see what happened before, during and after this event,” says the spokesperson.