One year in prison and TBS with compulsory treatment; the court in Assen imposed this punishment on the 51-year-old ex-marine who lived in a veterans’ shelter in Eelde. The man threatened his ex-girlfriend with a weapon and beat up, threatened and stalked a fellow resident of the Veteraren Home Base.
The man was arrested in March last year after his ex-girlfriend called the police. Earlier that day, the man had come to her house in Langelo. He had taken a weapon from his belongings, which were stored in a shed with her. According to the woman, he loaded it and said he would come back the next day to shoot her.
The ex-marine was convinced that the woman was cheating on several men, even though she vehemently denied this. The former soldier has multiple disorders, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). He got that from his job in the defense department.
Violence and stalking at veterans’ shelters
In November 2020, he beat up a fellow resident of the veterans shelter in Eelde when the two met outside in the parking lot. He thought that man was one of the men his ex-girlfriend cheated on. The victim was beaten and kicked and ended up in the bushes. Another inmate intervened, causing the aggressive ex-marine to stop.
The same victim received many phone calls and text messages from the 51-year-old man for a month at the beginning of last year. This mainly happened at night. The messages also contained threats, which made the inmate very afraid of the aggressive ex-marine.
A maximum of four years in prison
According to the psychologist and psychiatrist who examined the suspect, the risk of recurrence is high because of his psychological problems. Nor does the man himself see the seriousness of his problems. For example, during the lawsuit he said two weeks ago that he does not want to cooperate if he has to go to a clinic for treatment.
The former Marine has been declared less responsible and the court considers it important for the safety of other people that he is treated. Because he does not want to cooperate voluntarily and it concerns serious crimes, the court sees tbs with compulsory treatment as the only solution. The court has ruled that the TBS treatment may last for a maximum of four years.