“These are no longer jokes!”, Joey (36) responds to the threatening letters that were recently delivered to residents of the Markenland in Etten-Leur. The letter states that their house is being watched. Residents are called on to remove Ukrainian flags and hang a Russian flag. If they don’t, they will have to pay a monthly fee.
The writers of the letter state that many Ukrainians live on the Markenland and that many Ukrainian flags have been hung. “Every 1st of the month we will observe this neighborhood.” According to the letter writers, if there is no Russian flag, the consequences will be dire. Those who do not want to hang a Russian flag can also transfer a monthly amount. According to the letter writers, the proceeds will be used to ‘unify Russia’.
“I read part of the letter,” Joey says. “I saw a photo of that letter on WhatsApp. What it says is very strange. I hope it is a teenage joke, but the text is quite threatening. But if it is a serious story, I am curious to know what is yet to come.”
“It makes us all a bit uneasy.”
Cocky didn’t get the letter. “But I heard that it has been spread here. Such strange things are happening at the moment. Maybe it is an adolescent prank, that could be the case. A scammer? That could also be the case. It is difficult to distinguish between real and not real. I think It’s very annoying. It makes us all a bit restless.”
Chris (73) did receive the letter. “The letter looked a bit sloppy, as if it had been pulled from a notepad. The entire bottom was crooked. But it was probably made on a machine that can type Russian letters, because they were used in the last line.”
He immediately reported the incident to the police. “So that they know what is going on here in the neighborhood. Because about 250 to 300 people live in the entire neighborhood. If something were to happen, you would still blame yourself: I wish I had intervened.”
He has never seen a Ukrainian or Russian flag in the neighborhood. “And while I walk the dog here every day.” Still, he finds the letter worrying. “There are currently more crazy people living in the Netherlands than normal people,” he sighs.
“That letter seems like nonsense to me.”
Henk (72) has also not come across a single Ukrainian flag in the neighborhood. “And I’ve lived here for thirteen years.” He heard about the letter on Tuesday, through his neighbor. “It seems like nonsense to me,” he says. “We’re not going to do anything with it, just let it rest. We are quite down-to-earth about this.”
What does he think of people who send such letters? “That depends on what purpose they are doing this for. If you are doing this as a lame joke, then it is misplaced. If you are doing this to achieve something, then I don’t think you should do it this way. If you have your opinion want to get rid of, it has to be done in a different way.” In any case, he will not allow himself to be blackmailed. “No absolutely not.”
The police are calling for no money to be transferred and are looking for surveillance camera images that may show the person who distributed the letter. Suspicious situations can be reported to the police.
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