PETALING JAYA: The family of Dutch model Ivana Esther Robert Smit has claimed her body from Hospital Kuala Lumpur, more than two weeks after she fell to her death from an apartment building in Kuala Lumpur.
The Malay Mail Online quoted a source who said a family representative had retrieved her body from the hospital yesterday.
This was after reports that Ivana’s family was petitioning for the release of her body and had requested assistance from the Netherlands.
A letter by the family lawyers, cited by theSun daily, said they were also asking for the outcome of the investigations into her death so far.
“Ivana’s cause of death remains unknown, and a thorough investigation appears to be lacking in the incident,” the letter said.
Ivana, 18, died on Dec 7 after falling from the window of a 20th floor unit, landing on the balcony of a 6th floor mezzanine of the CapSquare Residences off Jalan Dang Wangi.
She had been staying with an American man and his Kazakhstan wife in the apartment after going out with them the night before.
The case was initially classified as sudden death, but Dang Wangi district police chief ACP Shaharuddin Abdullah told theSun it would be re-classified if evidence was found indicating foul play.
According to Dutch newspaper Algemeen Dagblad, Ivana’s family is suspicious over the circumstances surrounding her death.
They claim she had marks and bruises on her neck that looked “like fingerprints”.