Fmr. Police chief steps down as adviser during expense investigation

Former police chief Gerard Bouman is stepping down as adviser to the National Police while the investigation into his role in the expense irregularities of the police's Central Works Council is ongoing. This decision was made in consultation with Minister Ard van der Steur of Security and Justice, sources in The Hague confirmed to NU.nl after reports in the Telegraaf.

The former police chief came under fire after an investigation showed that the CWC wasted large amounts of money from their budget under his supervision. A large part of the 1.6 million euros budget was spent on fancy dinners and parties and stays in hotels with champagne breakfasts afterwards, among other things. Some believe Bouman used the large budget to bribe the CWC into making difficult decisions during the reorganizations into the National Police. Van der Steur announced an independent investigation into Bouman's role in this.

While prestenting the initial results of the investigation last week, current police chief Erik Akerboom said that this affair can largely be attributed to the individual actions of CWC chairman Frank Giltay, who resigned immediately after the initial investigation was announced. The rest of the CWC resigned on Monday night.