Suspect in girlfriend's killing brought from Switzerland to Vâlcea County
Vlăduță Băltățeanu, aged 30, surrendered to police in Saint Gallen on 28 September and was brought to Romania to serve an arrest warrant.
Murder suspect repatriated from Switzerland after surrendering to authorities
Vlăduță Băltățeanu, aged 30, from Vâlcea County, wanted internationally for murder, was brought to Romania on Thursday by police officers after surrendering in Switzerland, according to Gândul. The man had been arrested in absentia in connection with the violent death of his partner, Valentina Ionela Tănasie, aged 28.
On 28 September 2026, around 23:00, Băltățeanu presented himself voluntarily at the police station in Saint Gallen and surrendered to Swiss authorities. His handover to Romanian police was made possible through the International Police Cooperation Centre within the framework of the General Inspectorate of the Romanian Police.
"He was taken into custody by Romanian police officers, following procedures carried out together with Swiss authorities, to be taken to Vâlcea County, with a view to fulfilling judicial procedures and executing the arrest warrant issued in his name," the Romanian Police clarified.
Body discovered in a suitcase on the Olt River
The case came to light on 22 September 2026, when workers from Vâlcea County Police Department were notified by a fisherman in the area of the Ionești Dam. The man had spotted a piece of luggage floating on the surface of the lake; after pulling it to the shore, he found a human body inside.
"Following investigations, it was established that the deceased person is a woman, aged 28, with residence in the town of Filiași, Dolj County," representatives of Vâlcea County Police Department stated. The victim lived together with her live-in partner, Băltățeanu, at his home in the town of Tomșani, Vâlcea County.
The autopsy established that Valentina Ionela Tănasie had been hit twice on the head and had five broken ribs. Death was violent and occurred on 21 September 2026, according to forensic medical conclusions. A criminal file for murder, an offence provided for by article 188 subsection 1 of the Penal Code, was opened at the Prosecutor's Office of Vâlcea County Tribunal.
"From initial data it emerges that he would have left the country on 21.09.2026. The man was not found at his home," representatives of Vâlcea County Police Department further stated. Authorities mentioned that, up to that point, there were no previous complaints regarding conflicts between the two, but a protection order had been issued against the man four years earlier, concerning another partner.
Victim's father: "100% he killed her"
Petre Tănasie, Valentina's father, stated that the suspect had stayed a few days at a mutual acquaintance's before fleeing the country. "He stayed at my house for a few days. We had a barbecue. He seemed like a well-behaved boy to me. We would talk for two or three hours each evening with both of them. They said they wanted to open a salon," the father recounted.
Petre Tănasie added that he suspects the suspect may have had problems with drugs and alcohol. "100% he killed her. I went then to his mother's house and told her that this man killed my child, he killed my daughter if she disappeared," he declared. The father also said that his daughter had been beaten by the suspect in the past: "My wife told me that he had beaten her before. I spoke with my daughter and she told me that he beat her because he saw that she had sent someone a request on Instagram. She was a well-behaved girl."
Expanded investigation, one accomplice detained
Criminal investigation activities were coordinated by prosecutors from the Prosecutor's Office of Vâlcea County Tribunal, together with police officers from Vâlcea County Police Department and Sibiu County Police Department. On Tuesday evening, police officers detained a man in Sibiu County suspected of transporting Băltățeanu before his flight from the country.
Adrian Vrăbete, prosecutor at the Prosecutor's Office of Vâlcea County Tribunal, confirmed that the main suspect "would have left the country's territory before discovery of the deed". Once brought to Romania, Băltățeanu is to be taken to Vâlcea County for the execution of the arrest warrant.
Source: Gândul