Hague politicians acquitted of bribery, guilty of violating professional secrecy

The court of appeal acquitted Richard de Mos, fellow politician Rachid Guernaoui, and five entrepreneurs of corruption and bribery on Friday. The two politicians were found guilty of violating professional secrecy by sharing confidential information with entrepreneurs. The court gave De Mos a fully suspended fine of 2,000 euros. Geuranoui received no punishment, Omroep West reports.

The Public Prosecution Service (OM) had demanded suspended jail time, community service, and fines against the seven suspects. The OM also asked the court to ban the two politicians from working as civil servants for four years. According to the OM, the entrepreneurs paid bribes and gifts to the two politicians in exchange for inside information and preferential treatment, specifically in the granting of night permits.

The appeals court saw no ill intent in the entrepreneurs' donations to the politicians. Donations and gifts to political parties are part of the democratic system. All suspects were acquitted on this front.

But the two politicians were guilty of violating their professional secrecy, the appeals court ruled. Geurnaoui once and De Mos multiple times shared information they should have known was confidential in order to gain other information. De Mos also shared confidential information with journalists, the court ruled. It gave De Mos a fully suspended fine of 2,000 euros. Geurnaoui received no punishment. Both politicians can continue to serve as civil servants, the court ruled. A suspended fine means De Mos only has to pay the amount if he violates the conditions set by the court.

The corruption case against the two former aldermen in The Hague has been dragging on for years. The authorities first raided their workspaces at The Hague city hall and several homes in 2019. Their trial started over three years later.

In April last year, the court acquitted De Mos, Guernaoui, and the entrepreneurs of corruption. The court considered it proven that the entrepreneurs made over 100,000 euros in donations to De Mos’s party and that the man himself received nearly 270 euros in personal gifts, mainly consisting of meals and two boat trips. But according to the court, there was no malicious intent on the entrepreneurs’ part with those donations. One entrepreneur was found guilty of illegal weapons possession and given a suspended prison sentence of four months.

Earlier this week, De Most told Omroep West that he is eager to put all of this behind him after five years of uncertainty. “I am actually even angrier and more impatient than I was last year when I went to Rotterdam for the verdict. Especially because we missed out on [local government] participation again due to the appeal,” he said. According to him, the OM just pushed this case to appeal to safe face.

He said he wouldn’t seek a position as an alderman in The Hague if the appeals court acquits him again on Friday. “Times have changed,” De Mos explained. “Last year, we were much further away from the municipal elections in 2026 than now. Last year, we saw how long it takes to break open another coalition agreement and start negotiating again.” He said it didn’t feel worth it for a year in office.