Over 3,200 Dutch fugitives wanted for serious crimes on the loose

An increasing number of Dutch criminals are avoiding their prison sentences. The judiciary is currently looking for 3,209 fugitives who still have to serve prison sentences of 4 months or longer, compared to 2,760 in 2013 and 2,139 in 2009, according to documents from the Ministry of Security and Justice, NU.nl reports. These fugitives include serious criminals that were convicted of murder, drug trafficking, sex offenses and fraud. If the less serious crimes are included, nearly 12 thousand convicts still haven't served their prison sentences. A quarter of these cases, about 2,819, are fugitives that are "actively sought" because their outstanding sentence involves four months or more. There are another 390 fugitives that are not "actively sought" because they are believed to be abroad. Early last year the police launched FastNL, a police unit specifically aimed at catching fugitives. Since its establishment, the team arrested 202 fugitives.