The court has sentenced Eduard F. from Etten Leur to seventeen years in prison for the murder of Jelle Leemans. There is enough evidence that F. killed the Belgian drug trafficker almost ten years ago and caused his body to disappear. The motive was the amount of money that Leemans had in his pocket. “He has been guided by the fast criminal money,” the court ruled. He decided on a higher sentence than required because the disappearance is drastic and has a major impact on the relatives and society.
Jelle Leemans (27) disappeared at the end of 2013. On November 21 that year, he came to Roosendaal to buy ten kilos of weed. He had tens of thousands of euros with him to pay for the drugs. On the edge of the Rucphense Heide he had an appointment with Eduard F. (51) who admitted that they had seen each other on the day of the disappearance in question. F. was not alone. But he refuses to name the other person.
Murdered
F. also denied during his trial that he had done anything to Leemans. His lawyer therefore asked for acquittal due to lack of evidence. Moreover, it remains to be seen whether Leemans is really dead. The OM thinks there is enough evidence for his violent death and recently demanded fifteen years in prison.
The court concludes that Leemans has died. Because he was never heard from again and he would never do this to his parents and girlfriend. Moreover, there is no indication of an accident or suicide. What remains: violence.
Blood
The court rules that there is sufficient evidence that F. was involved in the disappearance of Leemans. There’s all sorts of evidence. His cell phone was in the same place as Jelle’s phone. F.’s DNA was also on the gear lever and seat belt of Jelle’s car. According to the court, F. returned Leemans’ car to Belgium, together with a friend of his from Roosendaal.
Furthermore, almost a year after the disappearance, the police found drops of blood from the victim in the back seat of F’s car. The court calls this a perpetrator’s trail. F. has ensured that the body was hidden and has kept it hidden, the judges ruled.
“Questions Unanswered”
What exactly happened in Leemans’ last hours remains unclear to the court. Shooting or any other form of violence has not been clarified. The goal was to take his money. Qualified manslaughter was declared proven, disposal of body and possession of weapons. “It looks like family will have to continue to live with questions that remain unanswered,” said the court presiding judge.
Wiretaps and other tapped conversations revealed even more evidence. Acquaintances of F. chatted about the case. They heard that ‘that Belgian’ had been ripped by F. and someone else. Another witness said in a secretly recorded conversation that F. Leemans had ‘shot to death’. The court called that supporting evidence.
At the back of the room were Jelle’s father and a sister. They were in tears. The mother was gone. Henk van Asselt, the lawyer of Eduard F. has already announced that he will appeal.
More suspects
During the investigation, the police had more suspects in the picture, including John Wassink. But he was killed shortly after Leemans’ disappearance. A friend of F. from Roosendaal was also arrested, but there was insufficient evidence against him.
The suspect Eduard F. was ultimately the only one standing trial in this case. That happened at the end of March in the court in Breda. Due to the seriousness of the allegations, the court decided that F. should be detained immediately. After his trial, he was apprehended by the police in court and taken to jail. He had stayed there on Tuesday, he was not at the verdict in court.
The Belgian’s body has never been found. In the circle around F. all kinds of stories about his body circulated. Leemans would have been dissolved in a barrel and washed away in a river or canal, but where exactly has never been known.
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