The debt burden at the bankrupt kitchen store Koning Keukens in Assen has risen to almost 1.4 million euros, according to research by the appointed curator Jilles Knotter. So far, 54 victims have reported to him as creditors.
Koning Keukens was declared bankrupt at the beginning of December. Customers who had paid thousands of euros for a kitchen did not receive their items from the end of last year and could no longer contact the company.
Finally, in November, a note was posted on the door of the store that read: “Temporarily closed due to circumstances.” Customers received an email with a similar effect. Bankruptcy followed a few weeks later.
According to the curator, the majority of the debt consists of claims submitted by the Tax Authorities. This concerns an amount of almost 770,000 euros in payroll taxes and sales tax that still have to be paid.
The 54 creditors who have reported to the curator say that they have jointly suffered losses of almost 600,000 euros. Knotter says that he is still fully investigating the case and can therefore not yet make any statements about the further settlement of the case.
The police are also investigating the case. Several victims reported fraud by the owner of the company. According to a spokesperson, the investigation is expected to take months: “It is a complex investigation, which also involves financial investigators. There is still progress to be made with which we want to complete the picture. That may take months.”
According to the police spokesperson, no more information can be provided at this time due to this investigation.
In the meantime, the contents of the bankrupt kitchen company are being auctioned. This includes items that were still in the showroom of the business. The sale will take place via an internet auction that will run until Tuesday. The proceeds from this are therefore not yet known. The money will be used, among other things, to pay off debts to the property owner.
Affected customers of the kitchen store have not yet seen anything back from their down payments. One of them is Dennis van Kekem from Exloo. He made a payment of 38,000 euros to Koning Keukens, but did not receive his kitchen delivered to his new apartment. He had to make do with a makeshift kitchen for a long time.
There is now a kitchen in his house that he likes. “But I put it together myself piece by piece. That was sometimes a logistical nightmare. I got parts from different suppliers, sawed the blades myself and tried to get them up.” And Van Kekem has double the costs: “Although this kitchen is a lot cheaper than the kitchen I first bought, because I arranged it myself.”
Van Kekem also filed a police report against the owner of the kitchen shop. “I know this investigation is still ongoing, but I am hopeful that something will come out of this.” As far as he is concerned, the matter will certainly continue to evolve.
Van Kekem is not counting on money from the bankruptcy. “No, I assume that my payment has been stolen and the Tax Authorities will be the first creditor.”