Man dies 15 months after ‘acid attack’ which robbed him of a leg, ear and an eye
Mark Van Dongen, 29, was also left paralysed from the neck down
A CIVIL engineer has died 15 months after suffering 83 per cent burns in a suspected acid attack.
Mark Van Dongen, 29, was left paralysed from the neck down and lost his left leg, ear and eye after the incident.
His ex-girlfriend Berlinah Wallace, 47, Wallace denies throwing sulphuric acid with intent to burn, maim, disfigure, disable or cause GBH
Mark, a Dutch national who moved to England six years ago to study at the University of Bristol, died on Monday.
He passed away at a hospital in Belgium, 15 months and 10 days after the alleged sulphuric acid attack in Redland, Bristol in September 2015.
Wallace's trial had been due to begin Monday but was postponed at a hearing at Bristol Crown Court pending further inquiries into the victim's death.
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Prosecutor Rachel Drake said: "Police are travelling to Belgium to obtain the breadth of information that is needed for the Crown to make a decision on what they want to do next."
After being treated in England he was moved to a hospital in Belgium last November, where his father - who had been driving to the UK to visit him every weekend - lives.
His body has since been released to his family and he was cremated on Thursday.
Speaking from his home in Breda, Netherlands, Mark's brother, dad-of-two Bartje Van Dongen, 34, said: "The family is broken at the moment. Mark was a sweet, kind man. The family are broken and we are very sad.
"He was a family man and he was very intelligent. He went to the University of Bristol and he enjoyed his life in the UK very much.
"We will remember his as a good man. My children love him a lot. We hope that we get justice for him."
The judge adjourned the case until April.
Wallace is remanded in custody.
Mark's family are fundraising to help his truck driver father Kees Van Dongen "rebuild his life" after he spent thousands travelling to the UK to visit his son in hospital.