Fmr. police chief told multiple cops they could keep their jobs after criminal conviction
Former Chief of the National Police Gerard Bouman guaranteed eight police officers their jobs even if they were convicted of a crime, Minister Stef Blok of Security and Justice wrote to parliament on Monday. This included five police officers involved in the death-in-custody of Mitch Henriquez in The Hague in 2015 and three from previous cases in 2010, 2012 and 2013, NU.nl reports.
"And all cases involved the use of firearms by police officers", the Minister wrote. Bouman told all eight cops that they would not lose their jobs, even if they were found guilty in criminal cases against them. Only the officer involved in the 2010 case was actually convicted. He received a suspended sentence and community service. "This employee now works without public contacts in the police."
It was previously revealed that Bouman promised five police officers involved in the death of Mitch Henriquez that they could keep their jobs, no matter the outcome of criminal investigations against them. Henriquez died shortly after being arrested at a music festival in The Hague in 2015. An autopsy revealed that he suffocated due to a crushed larynx, likely due to a chokehold used on him during his arrest.
