Suspect in Valentina case freed 4 years after beating and raping ex-girlfriend
Vlad Bălțățeanu, sought after his girlfriend was found dead in a suitcase in Olt, had already had a file for violence. The case remained unresolved for 4 years.
Case stalled 4 years whilst suspect remained free
Vlad Bălțățeanu, the man suspected of killing his girlfriend, placing her in a suitcase and throwing it into the Olt river, already had a file for serious violence with Romanian authorities — a case that stagnated for four years without producing any preventive effect. ProTV News reports that a former partner had obtained a restraining order against him, but the case only reached court on 21 September, four days before investigators believe Bălțățeanu killed his new girlfriend.
On Friday, Valentina, the girl found in a suitcase thrown into the Olt, was laid to rest.
"Black and blue, beaten badly, little finger broken"
The previous incident dates from September 2022, when Bălțățeanu's girlfriend at the time was 17 years old. The girl's father, a former police officer, described what his daughter went through: "She was beaten and raped, black and blue, beaten badly, little finger broken. I asked him: what did you do to her?! Well, she was looking at her phone and talking to other people in front of me."
The family had the courage to go to the police and seek help. The father added that Bălțățeanu "from night until morning was constantly drinking, hitting her all the time, according to her statements. She could have been the victim, and not just her. Unfortunately."
Throughout all this time, the individual remained free.
Prosecutor's office: lack of staff
Liviu Preda, chief prosecutor at the Prosecutor's Office attached to Horezu District Court, explained the delay: "The Prosecutor's Office attached to Horezu District Court faces, like many other prosecutor's offices in the country, a staff shortage. The case was resolved by indictment on 21.09.2025, the defendant was sent to trial for committing the offence of battery and other acts of violence."
Disturbing chronology
21 September — the day on which the penal system finally moved on the old case — would be, according to investigators, the very day Bălțățeanu is suspected of killing his new girlfriend. The two events overlapped on the same date, revealing a chronology that a woman present at the funeral summed up as follows: "He should have left, he doesn't exist, you must never accept such a thing."
An arrest warrant in absentia was issued in the name of Vlad Bălțățeanu, and the search continues at European level.
Source: Știrile ProTV