Man sentenced to 18 years, psychiatric treatment for killing 75-year-old woman
A court has sentenced 33-year-old Elias M. to 18 years in prison followed by involuntary psychiatric treatment for sexually assaulting and killing 75-year-old Yvonne on October 10, 2023, in a forest near Halsteren.
The court said, “The last minutes of her life must have been horrific. She must have experienced unimaginable fear and pain.”
Judges found that M. attacked Yvonne, committed sexual acts against her, and then killed her by strangulation and suffocation. Afterward, he moved her body off a forest path and covered it with leaves.
Semen traces found in the victim's underwear provided DNA evidence linking M. to the crime. M. admitted to killing Yvonne, stating, “I let her suffocate with my hands,” but denied committing sexual acts.
Yvonne had gone for a walk in the ‘t Wasven forest with her husband, who left early due to a knee operation. Her husband sounded the alarm at 6:17 p.m. when she failed to return. Her body was found at 12:22 a.m. by police. The victim’s steps, recorded on her phone, stopped at 3:57 p.m., indicating the time of the attack. DNA under her fingernails showed she fought her attacker.
M. had previously been convicted in 2022 for raping a woman who was jogging in Amsterdam. He was sentenced to involuntary psychiatric treatment (TBS).
His pretrial detention was suspended in May 2023, allowing him to stay in a semi-open psychiatric unit at Landgoed Vrederust. There, he later committed the Halsteren attack. The Amsterdam Court of Appeal will hear his appeal on January 29, 2026.
Experts say M. suffers from multiple psychiatric disorders, including schizophrenia and antisocial traits, and is highly likely to reoffend. Although M. claimed that “voices and demons” compelled him to act, the court agreed with behavioral experts that he was not fully psychotic during the attack and therefore criminally responsible. The judges described him as “manipulative and calculating.”
The prosecution described Yvonne as a victim of “a sexual crime leading to death” and emphasized that such cases highlight ongoing threats to women’s safety, even during daylight hours. “Dozens of women are killed by men each year,” prosecutors said. “Femicide is deeply embedded in a culture of masculinity and misogyny.”
