A number of students and teachers at Breda University of Applied Sciences (BUas) have been struggling with feelings of fear, insecurity and stress for the past year and a half. They are the result of threats made by a now 26-year-old former student of this course.
The former student from Groningen stood before the court in Den Bosch on Monday. She herself had appealed against the sentence that a police judge had imposed on her in March last year.
She reacted emotionally during the hearing. She was devastated by the whole situation and sobbed when a BUas manager explained what her death threats had done to other students and teachers.
‘See you Monday’
‘See you Monday’ and ‘you’ll see Monday’. These were the texts that the suspect sent to a number of teachers and students at BUas via email and social media on September 2, 2022. This warning was accompanied by a photo of a dead man in an advanced state of decomposition.
The BUas manager spoke during the hearing on behalf of all victims. He said the action has created uncertainty and fear. These feelings were and are experienced both at school, but also at home or in a student house. They lead to fatigue, restlessness and lack of concentration. Some students still stay at home because they no longer feel comfortable at BUas.
The consequences were so severe that a special team was set up by and for teachers, trained by psychologists, among others. Meetings are also still being held to discuss feelings of fear and trauma. Furthermore, a number of teachers do not dare to give a low rating for fear of new retaliation.
Stress
The BUas manager: “This affects teaching at its very core. All these measures have cost thousands of euros, money that we have not been able to spend on regular education. When it became known that the suspect had filed an appeal and the hearing loomed, several teachers and students went into stress mode again.”
The former student was given four days in prison by the police judge in Den Bosch (which she had already served in pre-trial detention) and restraining orders. Furthermore, 40 hours of community service would follow if she made the mistake again.
‘Just to shock’
The suspect does not want to accept the punishment because, according to her lawyer, there was no threat in a legal sense. It was just words, she didn’t know what was in the photo, his client never talked about a weapon and she has a clean criminal record.
The ex-student, who is now happily training to become a game IT specialist in Groningen, ‘just’ wanted to shock. She struggled with all kinds of personal problems, lost three family members in a short time and was expelled from the BUas after two years of many conflicts.
‘Life is not ruined’
Remarkably, the councilor interrupted the hearing to allow the BUas delegation, the suspect and her lawyer to talk to each other. Afterwards, both parties looked back on it with satisfaction.
The suspect was relieved that she had finally been able to look someone from the training in the eye – as she wished. She also found support in the words of the court. The councilor said her life does not have to be destroyed even if punishment is imposed for her actions.