An attractive woman parachutist plunged to her death from 12,000 feet after she spent a night in bed in her lover's arms and her rival was forced to sleep on the couch.

 

Now after 17 months of police inquiries in Belgium the public prosecutor is claiming that 22-year-old Els Clottemans sabotaged the parachute out of jealousy while the couple romped in a bed upstairs.

Both Clottemans and her rival Els van Doren, 37, had fallen for a good-looking Dutchman, named as Marcel S., who was also a member of the parachute club in Zwartberg, Belgium.

On the fateful night which is alleged to have led to the murder, van Doren was in Marcel's flat when her rival phoned. Clottemans was allowed into the apartment- but not into the double bed.

The prosecution claims she was so furious at having to sleep on the couch that, blinded by jealousy, she found van Doren's parachute lying in the flat and sabotaged it.

Two weeks later when van Doren used it for the first time since the fateful night with Marcel she hurtled to the ground at a speed of 120mph and was killed instantly.

Els Clottemans, who has been released from custody on bail, has steadfastly denied murdering her rival while police have probed her background.

Detectives have reported in 2005 she sent anonymous letters to van Doren's husband, b****arded Marcel with anonymous phone calls and once tried to kill herself.

She is due to go on trial next January in Tongeren, Belgium - although her defence lawyer Vic van Aelst says the prosecutor has no concrete evidence of her guilt.

He said: "The police detectives have their eyes fixed on only one person-- my client. They are blind towards any other potential suspects.

"The prosecutor hopes to convince the jury to jail her for life. He would not get very far with his flimsy case if he had to face only a panel of judges."