The court in Groningen has imposed a prison sentence of ten years on a 26-year-old man from Uithuizen for, among other things, fornication and two rapes in Meerstad and Assen.
The court finds it proven that the man raped a 17-year-old girl on August 18, 2023. At the time, she was cycling back home to Meerstad after an evening during the KEI week in Groningen. On the cycle path on the Driebondsweg, the man suddenly jumped out of the bushes and pulled her off the bike.
According to the victim, he tried to grab her phone and knocked her down with a punch. She tried to run, but the man allegedly caught up with her and then choked her throat. He then forced her into a car and forced her to perform sexual acts. In addition to raping this victim, he is also accused of deprivation of liberty.
The victim’s statement is reliable, the court states. DNA material from the suspect was also found on her clothing and undergarments and fibers were found in the car that most likely came from her clothing. The injury the girl suffered also fits her statement. The court finds it implausible that it was merely a botched robbery, as the man himself stated.
According to the court, the man is also guilty of a rape in Assen on July 19. This would have happened after a first date. He allegedly took the victim from Groningen to a remote parking lot near Assen, where he raped her. The man also denies this fact. According to him, it would have happened by mutual consent. According to the court, this is unbelievable and there is nothing in the file to prove this.
Child pornography material found on the man’s data carriers subsequently led to the allegations of indecent exposure. This allegedly involved three minor victims and an attempted sexual assault on the part of a fourth victim. The man allegedly gave sexual assignments online to the girls, who were 11, 9 and 6 years old at the time.
The fourth victim is from Australia and her age is estimated between 8 and 12 years. The suspect stated that he could not see that the girls were minors. The court also finds that story unbelievable. It would be clear from the images that they were minors.
He was also prosecuted for an earlier theft of a phone and a wallet after a date. The man admitted that. In their own words to make ‘quick money’.
The man did not want to undergo psychological and psychiatric examination, which is why experts could not judge possible disorders. Experts do see a ‘worrying pattern towards women with a certain systematic character.’
The Public Prosecution Service had demanded a prison sentence of eight years and TBS. Because no disorders were diagnosed in the man, the court decided not to impose a TBS with compulsory treatment. However, the prison sentence was increased to ten years in prison and the man will subsequently be placed under supervision.
According to the court, the suspect was guilty of several ‘very serious’ sexual offenses in a short period of time. Referring to the rape on Driebondsweg, the court spoke of an ‘outright horror scenario’. According to the court, he had no regard for the well-being of his victims and was only guided by his feelings of lust.