In the late 1920s, Mr. Loewenstein ranked as the world's third-richest man. Despite his seemingly perfect and luxurious life, it ended tragically. At the age of 51, he died in a rather bizarre accident. Did he take his own life, or was it a premeditated murder? The police closed the case swiftly as those present at the incident had no substantial information. So, what really happened?
Alfred Loewenstein, born on October 11,1877 in Brussels, Belgium, was a prominent Belgian financier and aviation entrepreneur in the early 20th century. He invested in diverse businesses and, along with his partners, tried his luck in different parts of the world, continually increasing his wealth. Unfortunately, he paid little attention to the well-being of others, prioritizing his quest to become the richest man globally. During World War I, he amassed wealth at the expense of others' suffering, shielded by his influential status. Despite financial losses suffered by many due to his schemes, he escaped prosecution. He achieved the status of the third-richest man globally. Although some claimed he suffered from manic depression, this was never proven. Meticulous and desiring control, he refrained from drinking or smoking to preserve his sharp mind and innovative business ideas.
The tragic flight
The fateful journey happened on the afternoon of July 4, 1928, at Croydon Airport in south London. The destination was Brussels, where Mr. Loewenstein had a meeting. His mechanic, Robert Little, and pilot, Donald Drew, awaited him at the airport. Fred Baxton, a personal servant, and stenographers Eileen Clarke and Paula Bidalon boarded the plane soon after. Before the boarding, Loewenstein had a phone call with his business partner in the control tower, arranging lunch for the upcoming week. Once all the passengers were on his new private plane, they started the engines and took off. The weather was ideal, with no clouds or unexpected storms.
Shortly after takeoff, Loewenstein allegedly went to the bathroom. The plane was small, there were doors with windows between the passengers and the pilot so that the pilot could see what was happening in the passenger compartment. There was a partition wall at the back of the plane and on one side was the toilet door and on the opposite side was the exit door from the plane. Although airplanes at that time were not yet at today's level, it was almost impossible for anyone to confuse the toilet door with the exit door. It has never happened before that someone opened the door and fell out of the plane during the flight. After twenty minutes, when he still didn’t return to the passenger compartment, the pilot became suspicious and knocked on the toilet door. No one answered him. When he opened it, he realized with horror that the rich man was not there.
Approaching the French coast, the pilot decided to land on a sandy beach under military control, so after a few minutes the French army rushed in and took the entire team to the police. Initially hesitant to reveal the person they were looking for, the crew, emotional and shocked, eventually disclosed Loewenstein's identity. The French police, however, withdrew from the case after 24 hours, claiming that the disappearance did not occur on French territory. Unfortunately, no country wanted to investigate further due to the incident happening high in the air.
After this, the media began extensively covering his mysterious disappearance, prompting people to develop various theories. One theory suggested a fisherman witnessed a parachute dropping from a plane, landing in the water near a sailboat that appeared unexpectedly in the middle of the sea. Some speculated that a black vehicle would come to pick him up after landing on the beach, while others believed he was never on the plane. Despite numerous speculations, the primary focus remained on whether Loewenstein was still alive.
Because he had a lot of money, his wife Madeleine lived a fancy life. She knew that even after he died, she would still be very rich because of the money he left her. But there was a problem, Belgian law said she had to wait four years before she could get the money if there was no proof he was really dead. Madeleine was determined to prove he was dead so she could get the money sooner. She hired people and put ads in newspapers offering a big reward for finding his body. When two days passed without finding him, she asked other people who were on the plane to tell the judge they saw him die. If the judge believed them, she could get a paper saying he was dead and then get the money. The pilot and mechanic said they could easily open the door on the plane, which they thought proved he fell out and died.
However, it was unclear who should handle the case, the French, because the plane landed in their country, the British, because the plane was registered there, or the Belgians, because Loewenstein was Belgian. This confusion resulted in his will being sealed, as no country wanted to deal with the case.
As people talk more about what might have happened to Alfred Loewenstein, and as everyone tries harder to find answers, I can't stop wondering if we will ever know the truth. And who will be the one to figure it out? The French, the British, or the Belgians? So, the search for answers goes on. Keep watching for the next part of this puzzling story.
Part two coming soon...
Source: Digging deep with a caffeine high!
Pic: Decided it was time to join the Midjourney crew.
Big thanks: Shoutout to my husband for being the rock who handles all my endless questions, and to the awesome #Hive community for letting me geek out about my passion for history and mysteries
With love, @tinabrezpike ❤️