The boys aged 14 and 15 who were arrested for sending threatening emails to a secondary school in Zaandam are allowed to go home under strict conditions. They would have sent plans for a school shooting with someone else’s phone. The lawyer of the youngest: “A longer pretrial detention would have hurt him even more.”
VMBO Pascal Zuid, on the edge of the Poelenburg district in Zaandam, closed its doors two weeks ago because teachers received an email with very menacing text had received. Attached was a photo of a gun with a note with the school name on it.
The primary school near Pascal Zuid also closed on April 4. “DThe whole school is going to cancer, people lying on the floor with blood on them, especially you teachers haha, it’s going to be the worst day of your life, take note. Regards, your dear friend”, can be read in the presumed email of which print screens are circulating online.
Soon a boy (14) from Zaandam is arrested. “They got the wrong one,” said his lawyer already know to NH. Last week, the Public Prosecution Service announced that it indeed believes that he is innocent and that his telephone (data) has been used improperly to send threats, so-called spoofing,
This would have been done by two other Zaandam boys aged fourteen and fifteen. They have been detained in a juvenile detention center for almost two weeks and are now being released, but remain suspects.
‘Only allowed online for school’
The juvenile court decided this after reviewing the criminal file, hearing the suspects, the Council for Child Protection and Youth Protection. Lawyer of the youngest suspect Mark-Jan Bouwman responds.
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“Fortunately, the court has decided, also in line with the advice of the Child Protection Board, to release my client under certain conditions. The investigation is still in full swing and we are waiting patiently for that. He is fully cooperating in this. “
He does not further elaborate on questions such as whether the boy is a student of Pascal Zuid. Not even when asked why a longer pre-trial detention had harmed his client. The lawyer of the other fifteen-year-old suspect was not yet available for comment at the time of publication.
Juvenile probation supervision
The investigation into the threats is still ongoing. The suspected boys must adhere to strict conditions during the suspension of their detention, such as showing up when the police or the judiciary so request, adhering to the school schedule and rules about online behavior. For example, they are only allowed to use the internet for school matters.
In addition, they had to cooperate with a personality test and possible treatment, the suspects were not allowed to speak to each other and the two had to be present during the substantive treatment of the criminal case.
When it will be used is not yet clear. Until then, the boys are supervised by the juvenile probation service. The Public Prosecution Service has been asked for a response to the release of the boys.