Mother Raul leaves the courtroom in tears, stepfather remains unmoved – assize case continues tomorrow | Region

The hearing is adjourned. As she left the court, Mary wept. Nicusor remained unmoved.

One of Raul’s teachers wrote a particularly emotional text about the boy three years ago. In it she describes him as a cheerful and playful child who immediately managed to touch everyone.

“It didn’t take much time to get to know you. You came running into our school, hugging everyone you met. I still feel your hugs. You clung on as if you never wanted to let go, and suddenly you were gone again.”

The teacher remembers how Raul called her name, sometimes enthusiastically, sometimes angry or sad. “When I close my eyes, I can still see yours. They sparkled with every play.”

She describes him as caring and affectionate. “Whenever I had a wound, you were touched and gave me a kiss. You wanted me to be with you, even when I couldn’t.”

The farewell came suddenly. “Suddenly you were gone, back to Romania, without saying goodbye. I hope you were happy and remembered your time with us with a smile.”

The text ends particularly poignantly: “Every day life went on, but you were no longer there. I can’t believe those eyes are closed now.”

During the reading, many people in the audience have difficulty. One of the translators is also having a hard time and her colleague has to take over. Raul’s mother also rubs tears from her eyes with a paper handkerchief.

The mother of nine-year-old Raul had a hard time this afternoon for one of the first times during the assize process. Twhen a senior figure from his school passed around a folder with her son’s drawings to the jury, Maria then took out her handkerchief.It was one of the first visible emotional reactions from her since the start of the trial.

Raul was warmly welcomed in his new class in the second year. A girl from class immediately took him under her wing. According to the teachers, Raul sought a lot of closeness and physical contact. The transition to another class was difficult at first: Raul resisted it and the language barrier also remained a major obstacle.

A teacher also testifies about Raul. He started with him in the third grade. “A world opened up for him. The first time he saw pencils and coloring paper, you could see it in his eyes.”

According to the teacher, Raul quickly became affectionate, precisely because the school invested a lot of time in him. The other students also quickly included him in the group. “He impressed because he could do a somersault from a standing position. They thought that was super cool.”

The teacher describes Raul as athletic, with a mischievous smile. The language barrier and cognitive difficulties made third grade too difficult. That’s why he moved to the second, in a smaller group. “He had a hard time with that, but he still came to say hello sometimes.”

One of Raul’s teachers immediately has a hard time during the swearing-in ceremony and starts crying. The chairman and the usher give her encouraging words.

The attorney addresses the school staff and emphasizes their role in the process. “You are the voice of Raul. There are almost no other testimonies about him.” When the news came out, they said they were quickly convinced it was Raul. “The concerns were already there. It was close to his home and the age was correct,” answers the director.

The chairman then encourages the school employees. She emphasizes that they did their best to intervene during the short period that Raul was at school.

When asked if they would like to add anything, the bridge figure brings out a booklet in which Raul was allowed to sign. There are only a few drawings in it. The bridge figure is visibly having a hard time. Maria in the accused’s bench also takes out her handkerchief.

According to the director, Raul was a sweet, funny and talkative child. “He talked all day long. ‘Comprende?’, he always asked. He was a very nice guy.”

It was noticeable that Raul was often pale, had very dry hands, was not well groomed and did not smell fresh. Yet she said there were no obvious signs of abuse at school. “Otherwise I would have informed the trust center,” she says.

The director also emphasizes that Raul did indeed go swimming, contrary to what previously appeared in the press.

According to the mediator, there was contact with the parents in the beginning. The mother replied to messages and also came when the school invited her.

At one point Raul had a fever and asked the school to come get him. Yet he went home alone. The bridge figure suggested to bring him, but saw from his look that he did not want to.

Not much later, Raul stopped coming to school. The school repeatedly contacted the mother and sent messages about his absence. Later it was heard that the family would leave for Romania. During her testimony, the bridge figure visibly struggles. “Wow,” said the lady.

According to the bridge figure, there were times when Raul became angry and physically aggressive. “He kicked and pushed us away,” it said. According to her, that behavior did not appear to be personally directed at school staff. “You could see he was angry,” he said.

At one point, Raul no longer wanted to go to class because he said the teacher was making “fascist” statements. The school thought that was strange, because the teacher was not known for that.

Raul also wandered the halls sometimes. At the same time, the staff describes him as an intelligent child, who was especially good at mathematics. After a few weeks, the school had the impression that he was feeling better. It was noticeable that he always wore the same clothes, so the school gave him extra clothes.

The bridge figure remembers that Raul started school in November. The school provided meals and also gave him a school bag.

It soon turned out that Raul came to school alone, along a dangerous road. The school contacted the parents about this. Sometimes Raul was already at the school gate at 7 o’clock.

At first he was very happy at school. “He was very enthusiastic,” he said. Later he had to go from third to second grade because it became too difficult. That led to resistance. It was also striking that Raul was very affectionate. According to the bridge figure, it is not normal for a child to bond so quickly with people he or she barely knows.

A childcare worker, a bridge figure – who forms the link between school and family – and the director of the school where Raul attended school, take their place in the witness box.

The witnesses who were originally not expected until 3:30 p.m., including Raul’s teachers, have arrived.

The hearing was suspended again because several Romanian witnesses, including Maria’s parents, did not show up.

The following witnesses were not called until 3:30 p.m. In the meantime, attempts are being made to reach other witnesses, including some of Raul’s teachers, earlier so that the hearing can resume more quickly.

The sister states that she had no contact with Maria for a long time, she says, about five years. During that period the children lived with their grandparents. Maria had no contact with her children. The sister did not think the situation surrounding the children was okay, but was happy that her parents were taking care of them.

According to the sister, Maria once said that the children should “go to an orphanage” if the care became too much for their parents.

The jury foreman reads a testimony from the sister of the accused Maria.

After a short break earlier, it is now time for a longer break. The hearing is adjourned until 2 p.m.

A man who also lived in the building on Afrikalaan testifies that he knew the children well. According to him, Raul and his sister were quiet children.

When he returned after a period of absence, he suddenly no longer saw Raul. He initially had a normal impression about Maria and Nicusor. He never saw them become aggressive or hit the children, although he did hear Maria shout when she was angry.

“Of course you don’t know what happened inside the house,” he says. According to the man, Raul’s sister had once told him that she couldn’t stand Nicusor. He describes Raul as “a quiet, calm and good boy”.

An associate of the company that recruits Romanian workers for slaughterhouses is now testifying. He also checked the homes where the employees stayed and said he was in the building almost every evening.

He often saw Raul there and sometimes gave him drinks, food or some money. At some point he no longer saw the boy. He also remembers that the sister once came to him crying, but was pulled away by her mother.

According to the witness, the room the family stayed in was actually intended for a couple, not for a family with children. He wanted them to move to a bigger room, but they didn’t want to. He said he did not know that the children no longer went to school.

Maria’s lawyer asks the witness if he has an explanation for what happened.

The man answers that he mainly came to the hearing to get answers. “But I’m afraid I won’t get them,” it sounds.