The latest chapter in Reverend Philip Clements and Florin Marin’s love and lives begins with the unfortunate passing of Clements and ends with infighting between family members.
According to Kent Live, the 81-year-old retired priest Philip Clements passed away in a Romanian hospital on May 31 of non-coronavirus related issues. Though due to visitor restrictions placed due to the coronavirus, Clements reportedly died alone.
But what about Florin Marin? According to DailyMail, Philip Clements left money for Florin. Florin will now receive £150,000 from a life insurance policy and Florin gets to keep the £100,000 Bucharest home. Plus, Florin will receive a £2,000-a-month-for-life pension.
As Florin told a local newspaper, MailOnline, he was in mourning but finished crying Clements’ death after two days.
“People will think that I am a widow with a black hat who is crying, and I did cry, but two days is enough,” he told the publication. “Philip didn’t want me to cry, he wanted people to be happy whatever happened.”
“I don’t want to show people my feelings because my husband died, because some people take advantage of that and there are people who are happy because of your sadness,” Florian added. “I am 27 years old and I’m not challenged.”
Meanwhile, Clements’ family is condemning Florin Marin. As Philip’s 71-year-old brother Anthony Clements told Daily Mail:
“Florin is nothing but a gold digger who set out to rob my brother from the moment they met. And now he has got what he wanted.”
Clements then added, “The man is a disgrace. I made my feelings clear to Anthony many times. What has happened speaks for itself. Florin has cashed in and has done very well out of my brother.”
But it seems it’s not just the younger brother who feels this way, as Clements added, “The whole family feels the same way. I’ve spoken to my other brother Brian about it too and he’s not happy either about the way Florin has taken advantage of Phillip.”
Though, there might be some bias due to not receiving money from Philip Clements’ will. As the younger brother noted, “We were supposed to inherit Philip’s estate but now it’s all gone to Florin. But it’s not about the money because I would rather have my brother alive. What angers us is the way he’s been treated by his husband.”
This is a sad last chapter in the Reverend Philip Clements and Florin Marin story. The couple’s relationship has been a rocky road of breakups and makeups. The two first got the internet’s attention back in 2017. At the time, Clements was a 78-year-old retired priest who sold his home in Kent, England to live with his 24-year-old newlywed husband.
But after buying an £88,800 (approximately £100,000 or $113,575) apartment in Marin’s home country of Romania and putting it in Marin’s name, the two had a falling out. Marin began staying out late to party and having arguments with Clements. Clements later had to leave the home and return to England for a health check, and Marin stated that Clements wasn’t welcome back. This was just weeks after their marriage.
Afterward, it was revealed the Marin had started dating another man. As Marin told a local Romanian news source, he had moved on from Clements to a 48-year-old businessman named Jeronimo Jesus de Vega.
“Philip knows,” Marin remarked, “I told him I found someone. He said that he would not want to keep in touch with me and that. No trace of jealousy [in de Vega]… he’s a very wealthy man, has been married to a Romanian, has a child, has a little girl… He has some business, he is wealthier than Philip. He knows very well that I like the money, I told him all about my husband, and I will stay here for a while and we will come to Romania. He is very busy.”
But that wasn’t the end of Clements and Marin. The two later announced their reunion, though with some changes to the relationship. Clements shared at the end of 2018 that he’d gotten back in contact with his estranged husband, and the two agreed to keep their relationship open.
“I love him to bits. Sometimes we have a little row but underlying it all I have a deep affection for him,” Clements explained. “I love him to bits, if we were permanently separated, I would be the most unhappy person in the world.”
Rest in peace, to Philip Clements.