Teacher & tennis coach sentenced to seven years in prison for sexually abusing minors

The court in The Hague has sentenced 62-year-old Fred M. to seven years in prison for several years of sexual abuse of five girls who were minors at the time. M. was a teacher at the time at a primary school in Pijnacker and was also a tennis coach at various associations; he had become acquainted with his victims this way.

The abuse took place from 2007 to 2022. “The court blames the suspect for the fact that his actions led the victims to a dark period of fear and loneliness in their youth,” the court verdict read. There was not enough evidence to convict M. for abusing a sixth victim.

For some girls, the abuse happened once. Others suffered the abuse on several occasions. In addition, the suspect had large amounts of child pornography on his computer; he had downloaded this almost daily in the period from 2006 to 2023.

M. will remain under surveillance for a long time after his incarceration. He will also be banned from ever working as a teacher or coach for 12 years and was issued a restraining order from the victims for a longer time.