Family raise questions after teenage model dies in fall from balcony

Ivana Smit. Photo: Instagram

Interpol has been asked to investigate the death of a Dutch teenager who fell from the 20th floor of an apartment block in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday morning.

Ivana Smit, 18, was naked when she fell 42 metres and onto a sixth-floor balcony of the building on Jalan Dang Wangi in the Malaysian capital.

Police said she was intoxicated at the time and blood tests revealed traces of alcohol, ecstasy and amphetamines in her system. But her father, Marcel Smit, told AD he saw blue marks resembling fingerprints round her neck when he was viewed her body.

The Dutch embassy in Malaysia has asked Interpol to investigate the concerns raised by Ivana’s family.

Her last communication was a selfie sent to her boyfriend at around 7.25am, in which she said she had gone home with an American couple after a night out. She added she was tired and wanted to go to sleep.

Camera footage from the apartments shows Ivana entering the building with her American hosts at around 5am. She is believed to have fallen at around 10am.

Her hosts told police that the husband had slept through the whole episode and not noticed her falling from the balcony, while his wife had gone out to take their four-year-old son to school.

But Marcel Smit said neighbours had heard shouting and arguments in the apartment block that morning. ‘The police are doing nothing with that information and just want to tie up the case quickly,’ he said.

He pointed out that the couple did not contact police until 3pm, five hours after the accident is thought to have happened. ‘It’s very strange that this American couple did nothing while Ivana’s things were lying in their apartment,’ he said.

Ivana’s uncle, Fred Agenjo, said there were other unanswered questions about her death. ‘Her clothes have been found, but her shoes and underwear haven’t. The police haven’t looked at her mobile phones. The police won’t say if the drugs got into her system while she was still alive. The police also won’t say if they found evidence of sexual intercourse.

‘We want a thorough investigation. If it turns out it was an accident or a reckless act by Ivana, we can live with that.’

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