A 48-year-old man has been convicted of a series of thefts and scams in Tilburg, Breda, Oisterwijk, Vught and Haaren. He has to undergo treatment for his drug addiction for two years in an institution. The man confessed to the court in Breda last week that he had robbed and scammed 23 elderly people with a chat trick. He did so when he had just been paroled for a few weeks with an ankle bracelet.
The public prosecutor, the suspect himself and his lawyer urged the court for a so-called ISD measure. That means he will be placed in an institution that will help him get rid of his addiction. The expectation is that this way the man has the best chance of still getting on the right path.
It was not the first time that the man had been put on trial and, according to the man, that had everything to do with his cocaine addiction. His criminal record counts 48 pages and includes convictions for similar chatter tricks and thefts. “That addiction is a disease and that’s why I did all those things. If I don’t get help, I’ll see you here again in a few years,” he told the judge last week.
Series of thefts in Brabant
The perpetrator committed the thefts and scams between June 2021 and March 2022. All victims were between the ages of 70 and 97 and were robbed in their own homes. The man had just been released on parole for a few weeks after serving a prison sentence for fraud in 2019.
In June 2021, he made four mistakes in Tilburg in a week. He stole money from people’s homes or their wallets. In July he scammed an elderly woman in Tilburg. With an excuse he managed to get hold of her debit card and with that he debited more than 1400 euros.
Between January and March of this year he committed a series of thefts in Breda, Oisterwijk, Vught and Haaren. Eighteen victims were robbed at home of, among other things, their wallet, debit card, tablet or laptop.
Confession of perpetrator
Last week, during the session in Breda, he also confessed to the four thefts and the fraud in Tilburg. “I sincerely regret it. It was a low act,” he told the judge at the time.
According to him, it was all because of his cocaine addiction. He hadn’t used or committed thefts in a few years, but when he was evicted with his wife and children, he had a relapse and started stealing again. “Now that I have not used anything for six months, I realize what I have done for those drugs. I am ashamed.”
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