Our reporter André Spanish is present at the case and tweets along live. His tweets can be found at the bottom of this post.
The Public Prosecution Service accuses the man of abuse and deprivation of liberty of the children of the family. This happened in the period from 1999 until the discovery of the family in October 2019. He is also being prosecuted for the deprivation of liberty of a man from Austria who was temporarily staying there. B. shook his head when the public prosecutor listed the suspicions against B..
The family was discovered after one of the children in the village raised the alarm. He took the officers to the farm, which was in the name of B. His five brothers and sisters, now also adults, stayed in an unlocked room. Their father is in bed, paralyzed on one side by a brain haemorrhage. The six children were not registered with the registry office, never attended a school or a medical institution. The farm was rented and refurbished by B. from 2009. A warehouse in Meppel was also in his name.
https://www.nieuwsblad.be/cnt/dmf20220508_95426204
B. had known the father of the family, Gerrit Jan van D., for decades through the infamous Moon sect. The family, which consists of nine children, has lived in Hasselt, Zwartsluis, Staphorst and Meppel since the late 1980s. The three oldest children left the family when they moved into the remote farm in Ruinerwold.
After leaving the Moon sect, Van D. wanted to “finish Jesus’ life’s work” and developed his own faith that he preached. Van D. called himself “prime father” and B. was his disciple. The children stated that B. never took part in the abuse himself. B. was there and carried out the orders he was given by Van D.. According to the children, B. was mistreated by their father himself.
Only B. is on trial. Gerrit Jan van D. suffered a brain haemorrhage in 2016 that affected his brain. The court in Assen ruled last year in March that the man would not understand a criminal case and stopped the lawsuit against Van D.