A 26-year-old Groningen man faces 200 hours of community service for setting fire to the curtains in his cell at the prison in Veenhuizen. “It was a cry for help, he didn’t feel heard,” the suspect’s lawyer said about this act.
The man was detained at the beginning of April 2024. He was abused by a fellow detainee, the man told the judge this morning. He wanted to file a report, but this was not taken up. A conversation with the director of the penitentiary institution (PI) also did not bring him any relief. “I wasn’t heard.”
He threatened to commit arson when he was taken back to his cell. “They waited outside the door. They knew I was going to do it,” the man said.
He just wanted to paint the wall black and prepared two buckets of water to extinguish the fire in time. He chose the wrong solution, the public prosecutor believed. A fire is capricious and can quickly end badly. Especially within the walls of an institution where people are detained.
Two prison employees suffered smoke inhalation. The fire also caused a lot of unrest within the prison walls, the prosecutor said. The suspect has a criminal record, but seems to have his life in better order. The public prosecutor therefore does not consider it appropriate to return him to the cell. No claim for damages was filed against the man.
The court will make its ruling on January 27.