A 37-year-old Helmonder, who killed an officer on the A270 near Nuenen in October 2020, has to go to jail for two months. The court in Den Bosch has decided that. The man was behind the wheel texting, he was watching a sports match and he was working on Instagram on his smartphone. The man was so busy with his phone that he didn’t see a police car on the road. 28-year-old officer Jeroen Leuwerink was killed in the collision.
He was also given a six-month suspended prison term with two years’ probation. In addition to the prison sentence, the man also has to pay 17,500 euros to the next of kin. In addition, he will receive a 240-hour community service order and will not be allowed to drive a car for three years.
Animal on the road
On Saturday evening, October 24, officer Jeroen Leuwerink (28) saw a dead badger on the road. He and his colleague decided to remove the animal to clear the highway. When Jeroen was standing in front of the police car, the car was hit from behind.
The Helmonder’s lawyer said earlier that the stationary police car had no flashing lights on and that there was no warning triangle. The officer was not impressed and demanded 2.5 years in prison, partly because the Helmonder showed so little remorse.
Steering with elbow
De Helmonder is a nurse and came home from work that evening. Investigations show that he followed a martial arts match, his phone was on the passenger seat. The driver was also texting during his ride on the A270.
It also appears that he was on Instagram for 40 seconds before the collision. And while he was holding the phone, he steered with his elbow. “The suspect played Russian roulette in traffic,” said officer Jeroen’s brother.
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