Second victim lashes out at suspect in abduction, murder of 9-year-old; Relatives angry

A boy who was abused by Donny M., a suspect in the murder of a nine-year-old boy named Gino, gave a very emotional speech in court in Maastricht on Tuesday. He kept asking why. “Why did you abuse me, why did you do this, why did you break my trust, why did you not get help? I thought that Donny was a very good friend of mine.” Gino’s sister left the court at one point in anger during M.’s testimony.

The young man, who does not want his name reported, still struggles as a result of the abuse, he told the court. “I feel incredibly dirty. I have been looking for help for two years, but because of the waiting lists in mental health care, I still have not had a conversation with a psychologist."

He started his speech by expressing his condolences for Gino’s family. The boy disappeared on July 1, 2022, after he had been playing football on a pitch in Kerkrade. M. administered drugs to the victim, abused him, and finally smothered him with a pillow in his home in Geleen. He dumped Gino's body at a burnt-down house near his home.

Police arrested M. three days after the disappearance, after which the boy's body was found at his direction. "Do you have any idea what you did to three families at once?" After he finished speaking, Gino's sisters embraced the young man.

M. had filmed the victim while he was out of consciousness. The images were found on his phone but were initially not investigated further and were not properly investigated by the police. "It makes me very angry that the police made mistakes," the victim said in his statement.

Gino’s sisters left the court in anger during the case when the personal issues of M. were being discussed. The suspect became emotional when speaking about “everything that has happened lately.” Gino’s sister yelled “Only now he gets emotional,” before leaving the court. She returned around 30 minutes later.

Many of Gino's relatives were present in the court. The details of the crime were discussed on Monday, with the court discussing M.’s personal circumstances on Tuesday. He had a troubled youth with a mother who was an addict and a lot of foster and youth care. He said that he was sexually abused when he was nine and ten years old by a swimming teacher and a supervisor at an institution.

According to M.’s lawyer, Sjanneke de Crom, the Public Prosecution Service dismissed M.'s charges against the supervisor last week. The lawyer said that she may want to challenge this decision in a complaint procedure at the court of appeal in Den Bosch.

M. got teary-eyed, and his voice broke when discussing the last few years. “I feel pain and sadness, that you can do this to another person. Considering my past, you would say that you don’t do this to another.” The prosecution’s recommendation is expected to be heard on Wednesday.

Kelly, the victim’s sister felt no sympathy for M. "I have a life sentence with you and you with me. Because of you, I want to do the worst things possible to someone for the first time. You have to spend your life behind bars. Treatment won't help anyway. Your chances are up."

Kelly is Gino’s oldest sister. “You messed with the wrong sister. You should be happy that the police found you before I did.”

Specialists of the Pieter Baan Centrum, which is the forensic psychiatric observation clinic, advised a long-term stay at a TBS psychiatric clinic for M. Specialists believe that M. suffers from many disorders, including pedophilia, and the chances of him repeating these offenses are high.

Personality research showed that M. was born addicted (his mother used heroin). This led to a personality disorder that developed early, including reckless and egocentric behavior. Lying and stealing are a common thread in M.'s life. Before his arrest, he used a lot of drugs, especially ecstasy and cocaine. M. also said he used drugs during the kidnapping and what followed.

"At its core, the foundation on which everything must be built was either not there in the early years or was crumbly," the experts said in their report. They explained their findings at the hearing on Tuesday.

Regarding the advice of the experts, M. himself said: "Completely justified. If we look at everything that has happened in my entire life." They determined that M. usually shows little emotion and comes across as flat.

According to the experts, M. reacts "primitively and lust-oriented, with little insight into the consequences." He loses sight of what his behavior can mean for others. M. himself said that he feels "pain and sorrow.”

The suspect from Limburg is also suspected of owning a large amount of child sex abuse videos and committing indecent acts with an incapacitated person in 2019.

The verdict in the case is expected on November 27.