Suspended sentence for drug extractors: is that allowed?

Wearing work boots and black and yellow fluorescent trousers, Shuruently M. (25) takes a seat next to co-suspect Izzettin I. (24). They met for the first time on a Sunday in March, behind a Lidl branch in Rotterdam. Shuruently M., now a garbage collector, ended up there under pressure from a local boy from whom he had borrowed thousands of euros. “I was supposed to pay it back in a few months, but after only a month he came and said: ‘I want it now’. Then came the threats and the ‘solution’ that I had to meet at Lidl that day.”

His co-suspect, Izzettin I. was also driven by debt, he says. He responded to a Telegram post about “making big money” and learned where to report that Sunday. Equipped with a power bank, ratchet wrenches and container seals, the two were dropped on the Maasvlakte at half past ten in the evening.

At 4:50 am I. and M. were arrested on the port grounds. In the meantime, the criminal file shows, they made a video of four sports bags with blocks of cocaine that they moved from one container to another. The drugs were never found. I. and M. are on trial for, among other things, preparatory acts for cocaine smuggling.

I. admits this freely, M. less so. “Maybe clothes, maybe fruit,” is the answer to the question of what he thought was in the container. After his lawyer intervened, he says: “I had the idea that it was criminal activity.”

“Many people sitting here don’t say anything,” court chairman Jacco Janssen responds cheerfully. “I think you are open. And your lawyer will help you with the last step.”

Judge Jacco Janssen.

Overloaded courts

Welcome to the Fast Future-oriented Multiple Chamber Session (STMK) of the Rotterdam court: an alternative form of adjudication devised by Judge Janssen that should, among other things, relieve the pressure on the overloaded criminal justice chain. Since last November, fourteen suspects have been tried in this way, I. and M. are numbers fifteen and sixteen.

During these types of hearings, a suspect of a serious crime is brought before the judge relatively quickly. Such a rapid treatment is more efficient, partly because no interim hearings are necessary regarding the progress of the investigation and pre-trial detention. This frees up space for other criminal cases.

The suspect quickly receives clarity and is fortunate that his sentence is lower than in a regular hearing. At STMK, all punishment objectives are emphatically central. Not only retaliation and deterrence of others, but also preventing the perpetrator from making the same mistake again and ensuring that he finds his way back into society.

In addition, the probation service is closely involved and – as a stick behind the door – a large part of the prison sentence is imposed conditionally. The suspect is expected not to remain silent, but to reflect on his actions. Only then can a punishment be devised that does justice to his specific circumstances and backgrounds.

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pronunciation in the appeal of the very first STMK case. This also involved a drug addict, but he was caught with hundreds of kilos of cocaine. While these types of perpetrators usually receive unconditional sentences of 3 to 4 years, the Rotterdam court imposed a conditional sentence of 18 months on him. The Public Prosecution Service appealed and demanded no less than 6.5 years in prison. The court sentenced him last week to 2 years unconditionally.

More fundamental were the five points of criticism that the court formulated at the Rapid Multiple Future-oriented House hearing, including about the required openness of the suspect. The court is also concerned about legal equality because it is “more or less a coincidence” which suspects qualify.

Pioneering role

With Judge Janssen in the lead – who also had a pioneering role in the introduction of trial agreements – the Rotterdam court continued with the STMK project on Wednesday. He described the court’s correction as “a number of tips” and stated that more transparency surrounding the procedure is being worked on. According to Janssen, it can be deduced from the relatively low sentence that the court imposed that the counselors think the STMK project is “also a good idea”.

According to him, extractors I. and M. are “a textbook example” in the STMK field because they provide insight into their actions and try to make something of their lives again.

The public prosecutor is more critical. She believes that Shuruently M., who denies that he is in the video with the bags of coke, only provides limited insight into his actions. She calls both perpetrators “indispensable links in the chain of drug imports from South America.” She also points out that the number of arrested extractors in the port of Rotterdam has risen sharply in 2023 and is already more than 350.

She demands 18 months in prison against I. and M. (of which 8 and 6 months are conditional respectively) and a long list of special conditions including strong probation supervision. This would mean that the men, who were in pre-trial detention from March to June, would have to spend more than six months in prison.

And that saddles the court with “a problem,” says Janssen after the hearing has been adjourned. “The officer is right that severe punishment must be imposed.” But the court finds sending the suspects back to jail “really counterproductive.” And so the suspects are sentenced to 16 months in prison, 13 of which are conditional, community service of 200 hours (M.) and 150 hours (I.) and a long list of special conditions. “There will be a colossal punishment hanging over your heads if you do something wrong again.”

M. walks out of the courtroom with a smile. Whether it stays on his face will become apparent within two weeks. The officer is “considering” an appeal.