Last August, the wife of a 46-year-old Pole saw via Facetime how her husband was attacked by his housemate at the Ermerstrand recreational park in Erm. Later her husband was found dead. The attacker, also a Pole, was sentenced to nine years in prison and TBS with compulsory treatment.
“I don’t remember” and “I don’t know.” During an hours-long substantive hearing in the court in Assen on Tuesday, the 46-year-old Polish suspect did not reveal anything about what happened in Erm on Friday evening, August 12, 2022.
The suspect’s attitude angered the victim’s wife, who flew from Poland to attend the case. At one point the widow can no longer hold back her frustration and bitterly shouts something in Polish at the suspect. But the man sits almost motionless in his chair all day long.
The woman uses her right to speak and says she feels “incredible anger and contempt” for her fellow countryman, who deserves the highest possible sentence after his “bestialities.”
Interrogated six times, nothing explained
The suspect has been interrogated by the police six times since his arrest on August 13, but in all that time he has not said anything. During his arrest, the man told police officers via the Google Translate app that people were entering his home in the dark. “I had to defend myself.” In the meantime, the officers noticed that his right hand was swollen and that he had injuries.
According to the Public Prosecution Service, it is crystal clear that the Pole is guilty of the death of his housemate. Forensic research shows that the victim was hit with various objects. The man was hit with a full bottle of vodka. But the Pole also had a blow outside the house with bricks that were stacked in front of the house.
In addition, the suspect’s blood was found on the blade of a knife and witnesses indicate that the suspect was angry and spoke poorly about the victim.
Victim was moving
The suspect earned a living in the Netherlands and worked as a chicken catcher in the neighborhood through employment agency Prismaworx. The employment agency rents dozens of houses at the Ermerstrand recreational park and houses foreign migrant workers there. The Pole stayed in one of those homes together with the 46-year-old victim. The relationship between the two Polish men was not good.
The 46-year-old victim told his wife that he was tired of his roommate and that he could “luckily” move because of his new job. Earlier, a younger housemate had left out of fear of the suspect.
Phone conversation disrupted
The woman called her husband every evening, often for hours. But on Friday evening, August 12, the Facetime conversation was interrupted several times by the 46-year-old suspect, who intrusively asked if his roommate would like to drink vodka with him. Each time the victim replied that he would like to call his wife.
At one point, the woman saw her husband being attacked by the suspect. There was silence on the other end of the line. It wasn’t until a minute later that she heard her husband’s voice. “Baby, do you see my hands? They are completely covered in blood. Call the ambulance. He broke my head.”
Brutally beaten to death
It is the last time the woman spoke to her husband. In a panic, she tried to call her husband four more times and sent two emails to the employment agency to ask about her husband’s condition. There was silence on the other side.
The next day, the grim truth surfaces: her husband is dead. He appears to have been brutally beaten to death, as evidenced by the fractures in his face and skull. The man also has two stab wounds in his shoulder. “A gruesome picture of extreme violence,” the public prosecutor summarizes the explosion of violence. “With the ultimate goal of beating the other person to death.”
‘Extreme violence’
Two women reportedly saw a beating man at the house in question that evening. One of the women, also from Poland, sees a bare-chested man being knocked down at least five times with a plank. After consultation with her husband, she ultimately decides not to call the police, because excessive drinking and fights are commonplace on the Ermerstrand.
After the death of his roommate, the suspect tried to cover his tracks. He stole the dead Pole’s phone and attempted to clean up traces of blood, which can be found everywhere in the house. He also tried to remove blood spatter on his jeans in a bucket of water.
Delusions and schizophrenia
Research at the Pieter Baan Center shows that the Polish suspect has ‘paranoid delusions’ and suffers from schizophrenia. He also struggles with an alcohol problem. Since 2003, the Pole has been treated for his disorders in his home country and takes medication, although according to the report from the Pieter Baan Center he does not realize how mentally ill he is. Experts believe there is a high risk of recurrence if it is not treated.
The Public Prosecution Service (OM) is therefore demanding a prison sentence of nine years and a TBS with compulsory treatment against the suspect. The Pole’s lawyer believes manslaughter has not been proven and demands a verdict. According to her, there are indications that a third person is involved in the violent incident. She also states that the missing phone has not been found and that witness statements do not match the appearance of the suspect.
The judge will make a ruling on October 10.