He eventually did. “I was really drunk,” he confesses, “then you see people throwing stones, and I think: I can do that too. Stupid, stupider, stupidest, I could kick myself in the head.”
He allowed himself to be incited by the crowd, he analyzes his behavior. “If people cheer at every stone, it does something to you.”
‘Bizarre in the most negative sense of the word’
The public prosecutor emphasizes that A. ‘contributed to a grim, unsafe atmosphere’ in Loosdrecht. “It is a miracle that there were no injuries when I look at the heavy artillery that was thrown at the town hall […] Bizarre in the worst sense of the word.”
He demands eight weeks in prison, two of which are conditional. “A community service is not appropriate for such a serious case,” the officer emphasizes.
A.’s lawyer thinks a prison sentence has gone too far and argues for sixty hours of community service. “The person who threw fireworks at the police is alone a suspended prison sentence received. Only material damage has been caused here.”
Damage amount not sufficiently substantiated
The municipality of Wijdemeren, not present in the courtroom, estimates the damage at 35,000 euros, the officer says. However, he still thinks that amount is too much out of the blue to (partially) recover it from the suspect.
The judge finds that this is ‘a very serious offence’. “Demonstrating is allowed, but this is no longer a demonstration. I think it should send a signal because this has to stop.”
She sentences A. to six weeks in prison, of which two weeks are conditional. In addition, he must pay the municipality and other rioters at least 5,000 euros.
