A witness from the horse world, with whom the defense unexpectedly came up on Thursday in the Engill money laundering case, has ensured that the criminal case is again halted.
The lawyers of main suspect Gerrie N. (49), his brother Alex (51) and their 71-year-old mother had taken a former acquaintance of their deceased father and husband to court. Between 2011 and 2014 he worked at Nijboer Stables, the horse breeding company in Assen where a cash amount of 763,000 euros was found in 2018.
The police also found a semi-automatic weapon and a kilo of hemp at the company on Witterweg. The large amount of money was hidden in a shed, in an underground barrel under a workbench. In addition, a revolver was hidden in a clock in the house where the mother lives.
Justice assumes that the family is in crime and the money comes from crime; so laundering. The brothers and their mother have not wanted to explain anything to the police, but according to their lawyers, they state that the cash comes from the horse trade of their father and husband, who died in 2015; a ‘black legacy’ their lawyers say. The 71-year-old Assense has now put a statement on paper about this.
Challenge
The lawyers wanted to hear three witnesses who had had dealings with the deceased business owner in the past. They could explain more about how things are in the horse world and thus support the statement of the suspects. When the court refused, the lawyers retaliated against the court because they felt their clients were not getting a fair trial.
The challenge request was rejected by three other judges on Wednesday, after which the Engill case would be heard on Thursday. But then the lawyers came up with a new witness: the man from Tolbert had called one of them on Wednesday evening, because he had read about the Engill case in the newspaper and knew more. The court allowed the hearing of the man, who had accompanied him to the Groningen court. He stated that the accusations of the judiciary about money laundering are not correct.
Money on the clothesline
De Tolberter is a horse shearer and trader and knew the deceased father of Gerrie and Alex N. well. He talked about the proceeds from breeding stallions and the large amounts that the horse trade can yield. He was not surprised that more than seven tons of hidden money were found. “I was surprised it wasn’t more.”
He had worked with Jaap, the former owner of Nijboer Stables, for three and a half years, he said, and he knew that huge amounts of cash were involved in the company. “As a joke, Jaap once hung all the bills he earned from the sale of a horse on the washing line.”
The man also stated that the previously rejected witnesses had traded several times with the father of Gerrie and Alex N. and had also been in the stable several times. The lawyers therefore asked the court again to interrogate those men, including a Swede and a Belgian. The Public Prosecution Service opposed this, just like Tuesday.
New twist
After long deliberation, the court spoke of ‘a novelty’, a new twist in the case. The statement of the man from Tolbert can support the story of the mother of the N. brothers. This is reason for the court to want to hear the other three witnesses. This happens behind closed doors at the investigating judge.
So the case, which has been going on for 4.5 years since the raid in 2018, was postponed again. “The court finds that annoying, but in the end it is – and the court considers that the most important – about finding the truth,” said the presiding judge of the court. It could take months for the Engill case to move forward.
Liquidation threat
Suspect Alex N., who was previously sentenced to one and a half years in prison for money laundering, was again not at the trial on Thursday. His brother followed the case in a secret place via a video link. Last year he received information from the judiciary that there is a threat of liquidation. According to Gerrie N., this must be a misunderstanding, but he is in hiding to avoid any risk.