No prison time for De Mol extortionist

The court in Utrecht sentenced Dirk M., the man who attempted to extort the De Mol family for more than a year, to 441 days in prison, of which 300 days are suspended. He will therefore not have to spend any more time in prison as the 141 days left in his sentence is equal to the time he spent in custody. According to the judges, M. has greatly diminished responsibility and is not fit to serve a prison sentence due to the dementia he suffers, NU reports. The 71 year old Dirk M. was acquitted of attempted extortion, but was found guilty of threatening Linda de Mol and her family. "He did that for 13 months", the court said. "He kept constant pressure on John and Linda de Mol. Linda de Mol incurred extra cost for security, including for her children." M. has to repay these costs. According to his lawyer, that won't be a problem. According to the experts that examined M., he is suffering from a form of dementia that severely compromises his emphatic ability and leads to obsessive and compulsive behavior. This illness was an important factor in M. being released from custody, and now also played an important role in the court's decision not to send him to prison. According to the experts, time in prison would deteriorate M. irreversible health situation further. The Public Prosecutor is satisfied that M. will not be spending any more time in prison. However, the prosecutor did demand a restraining order against M. for John de Mol, Linda de Mol and her children, an area ban for their homes and a probation period of three years. M. was arrested early in December last year. According to the Public Prosecutor, M. continually terrorized the De Mol family for more than a year by sending threatening letters in which he demanded money.