Real estate is another sore point that is mentioned. According to the report, Hoogeveen is an attractive place to house migrant workers. There are few rules and properties are cheap. It is possible that slum landlords do not do any maintenance, but do increase the rent, which could lead to people being exploited. According to the researchers, the municipality does not have sufficient insight into this.
“Many families struggle with poverty and hopelessness. That is a breeding ground for drug use as an escape. And crime as a source of income.” The report describes real estate practices as susceptible to money laundering. “Partly because cash partial payments quickly go unnoticed.”
The Court of Audit states that recreational parks and industrial estates can be a source of various illegal practices. “There is hardly any approach to industrial estates and the view of recreational parks is one-sided.”
According to the report’s findings, business premises are suitable for setting up cannabis farms, hidden behind legal business activities. “The old parts of the De Wieken industrial estate with hidden companies or company entrances seem to lend themselves to this.” This is less the case at the Buitenvaart business park.
The Court of Audit says that Hoogeveen is a favorable connection point with the Randstad, Gelderland, Overijssel and Northern Netherlands. It is also a short distance from Germany. According to the researchers, criminals take advantage of the convenient connection point.
The municipalities of De Wolden and Hoogeveen together have 11.33 FTEs of boas. According to the Court of Audit, this is poor compared to the large working area. “Boas rarely visit industrial estates and do not have a good overview of the state of affairs in the countryside. There is hardly any room for catering controls and specialization.” It is also written that the number of public order and safety officials for both municipalities together is too few. That is now around three full-timers.
The approach to organized crime still relies too much on the police, the report states. “While investigative capacity is scarce in Southwest Drenthe.” The municipality itself does not have sufficient insight into criminal activities. “The municipality does not have a good information position.” The official capacity is too small for this and there is therefore no correct policy, the Court of Audit believes.
One recommendation made by the Court of Audit is to deploy more boas and public safety officials. In addition, a targeted approach to combating organized crime is advocated. Previously, a building where drugs were produced was closed by the municipality based on a report from the police. “The approach is strongly incident-driven.”
The Court of Audit recommends that you gather more information about illegal practices yourself, so that the municipality can act (prematurely). This could possibly be done with more staff. For example, by carrying out checks on suspicious situations at recreational parks or industrial estates. The message is to invest in gathering information.
Structural action is necessary, the researchers think. There is currently no reporting point in Hoogeveen for residents to report undermining. With a reporting point, tips and signals about abuses could be received. The members of the Court of Audit think it would be wise to also create a reporting point for civil servants who work for the municipality.
Another recommendation is to further develop the bibob policy. This is legislation that gives municipalities the opportunity to refuse applications for permits, subsidies and real estate transactions. This way, criminals have less opportunity to strike.
More attention should also be paid to combating drug use and trafficking. Renting out homes and rooms must be regulated and enforced. In this way, the municipality could have more influence on industrial estates.
In a response to the research, the council indicates that it is difficult to get a precise picture of organized crime. According to them, this has not been successful in any other municipality. The Board therefore finds the Court of Audit’s investigation interesting purely on the basis of theory. “But the municipality wants to act on the basis of practical examples.”
The municipal council says that criminal prosecution is not the responsibility of the municipality. “Hoogeveen only has a signaling function.” The council would therefore like to further develop certain points from the study, but the municipal council believes that there are more parties that bear responsibility.
The report will be discussed by the municipal council later this month. The council advises the council not to draw hasty conclusions. According to the municipal council, more research is needed. Hoogeveen is open to finding out whether the bibob policy can be expanded. The plan is to schedule more consultation moments to arrive at a better approach.
The council’s response to the research therefore also worries the researchers. According to the Court of Audit, little attention has been paid to the theme of undermining in recent years. It has recently been put on the agenda, but the Court of Audit researchers still believe this is only a piecemeal approach.
“The council advises you as a council not to draw hasty conclusions, while a study into Hoogeveen practice indicates that Hoogeveen scores ‘high’ in terms of undermining crime,” writes Arie Teeuw, chairman of the Court of Audit. According to him, there is a rush to change things. The Public Order and Safety department and the boa organization are not able to tackle the problems at the moment, he says.
“In contrast to the high risks, there is an as yet underdeveloped vision on combating undermining. There is an enormous task and it is insufficiently recognized in the administrative response. It was by no means a theoretical exercise, but a thorough investigation by highly experienced professional researchers, partly based on on street-level research.”
According to Teeuw, no municipality has managed to fully control the many-headed monster of undermining. “We did not want to create that illusion. But without vision, policy and action, one thing is clear: subversion will grow and innocent residents will become victims.”
He writes that the municipality is not taking its responsibility. “In fact, she doesn’t even know or see him! The council’s response seems to downplay the findings of our investigation.” A similar study was conducted in the Groningen Ommeland. The results were taken very seriously there, he says, while this does not seem to be the case in Hoogeveen.
The city council must ultimately consider the report. Later this month, council members will receive an explanation from the researchers. “We would like to point out to the council the recommendations from our report with the aim of raising the quality of life in society in Hoogeveen to a higher level. The residents of Hoogeveen need that political support and more safety.”