Baroness slain: stepson and former spook top suspect
Former Baroness Myriam Ullens de Schooten has been shot dead. It’s thought her stepson is probably the culprit. Ullens de Schooten is the wife of the former top executive at Tiense Suikerraffinaderij, the Flemish sugar company in Tienen (Flemish Brabant).
Various Belgian media report that the 70-year-old was shot dead outside her home in Lasne (Walloon Brabant). Myriam Ullens de Schooten is the second husband of Baron Guy Ullens de Schooten Whettnall, a Belgian captain of industry, philanthropist and contemporary art collector. He’s believed to be worth 2 billion euros. The baroness too was a businesswoman and funded international development projects.
Media reports suggest the baroness was shot dead with a gun around 10AM on Wednesday outside her home by her stepson, a man in his 50s. The woman was dead at the scene. Forensic scientists, a police doctor, an examining magistrate and a ballistic expert attended the scene.
The stepson Nicolas Ulens de Schooten, a former member of the Belgian state intelligence service, has been detained. Media outlets suggest that according to the stepson the motive for the killing was his stepmother’s propensity to spend her husband’s fortune following his stroke.
