The autopsy places Josep Juanpere's death between 15.00 and 21.00 on 26 December. Belén López says she did not realise he had stopped breathing, while a judge examines neck injuries and the lack of an emergency call.
The autopsy places Josep Juanpere's death between 15.00 and 21.00 on 26 December. By about 21.00, emergency teams and relatives had reached the apartment in Vielha. Belén López may have been beside the architect's body for several hours.
López was arrested in Madrid and is currently the only person under investigation in the case. She was later released on bail of 80,000 euros.
That is the central point.
The judge is examining two possibilities. Pressure on Juanpere's neck may have caused fatal injuries. He may also have suffered a heart attack and received no help.
According to her statement, the architect had suffered acute gastroenteritis since Christmas Eve. He felt unwell again during the afternoon of 26 December. López said she stayed with him in the bedroom throughout the afternoon, then remembered nothing until the emergency services arrived.
She told investigators that she saw no loss of breathing, no spasm and no other sign that Juanpere was dying or had already died.
The investigation has involved Mossos d’Esquadra, the police and the Guardia Civil. Investigators carried out searches at López’s homes in Madrid and Málaga and seized telephones for examination.
Juanpere's nephew opened the apartment on the night of 26 December. He had been unable to speak with his uncle for 24 hours. With help from an X-ray, he entered after López had locked the door from inside.
The nephew told investigators that he found Juanpere in the bedroom. López was beside him. He described her as aggressive and said she did not want him to enter the room.
Forensic doctors found injuries on Juanpere's neck that could have been fatal. The initial autopsy pointed to heart failure. Later forensic conclusions reportedly found injuries compatible with external force.
EL PERIÓDICO reported that the available evidence has not established what caused the death. Juanpere may have died from those injuries. He may also have suffered a heart attack in López's presence. The judge in Vielha is investigating the case as a homicide while both possibilities remain open.
The judge has also described the relationship between Juanpere and López as tense, according to El País. That assessment, the neck injuries, the locked door and the missing call to 112 all form part of the reasoning behind the continued homicide investigation.
They do not establish how Juanpere died. They do not show whether López caused his death.
The Mossos are analysing the mobile phones belonging to Juanpere and López. Investigators are also checking whether anyone else was inside the apartment on 26 December. López remains free after posting bail of 80,000 euros.
An earlier Madrid homicide investigation involving an elderly couple was a different case. It shows why the circumstances of a death can remain under judicial scrutiny when the first account is disputed. The case was covered in this earlier report.
Here, the unanswered question is what happened during the period identified by the autopsy. López's statement places her beside Juanpere for much of that time. The nephew's account describes a locked apartment and resistance to entering the bedroom.
The phone analysis and forensic evidence may clarify those points. Until then, the case rests on competing explanations. The neck injuries, the lack of an emergency call and the uncertainty over whether help could have changed the outcome explain why the homicide investigation continues.
