99-year-old woman found dead in bath

Hendrika Holshuijsen, a 99-year-old woman from Amsterdam, was found dead on Thursday, 17 August 2017, inside her home on Noordhollandstraat in Buitenveldert. She would have turned 100 the next day and had already prepared for her birthday; the pastries had already been ordered. Despite her advanced age, she still lived independently in a two-storey house and was described as an active and vital woman. Police went to her home after neighbours heard running water and became concerned. When no one answered the door, officers forced entry. Inside the house, a large amount of water was leaking down from the upper floor. Officers went upstairs and found Hendrika Holshuijsen lifeless in the bathtub in the bathroom. At first, because of her age, a natural death or a tragic accident could still be considered, but further investigation produced indications that she may have died as the result of a crime. Police therefore opened an investigation and appealed for witnesses who had seen or heard anything unusual around her home on Noordhollandstraat between the evening of Tuesday, 15 August, and the morning of Thursday, 17 August 2017. Investigators looked at people who had been in the street, possible suspicious movements around the house and anyone who had been in contact with her in the days before her death. The exact cause of death was not clearly made public. It was also never established who may have been responsible for her death. As far as is known, no suspect was ever convicted. The case therefore remained unsolved. Hendrika Holshuijsen died one day before her hundredth birthday, under circumstances that police considered suspicious, but without it ever becoming publicly clear what exactly happened inside her home.