Suspect in Mallorca fatal beating accused of perjury, arrested in court
The Public Prosecution Service (OM) accused Martijn T., one of the suspects in the Mallorca case, of perjury. T. was arrested in court on the third day of hearings in the trial around two brawls on the Spanish island that resulted in the death of 27-year-old Carlo Heuvelman in July last year.
Martijn T. previously stated to the examining magistrate that he never discussed the brawls with the other members of his group after the fights in Mallorca. He repeated that on Thursday, to the surprise of the court.
A Snapchat video made by another suspect played at the hearing showed T. present at such a conversation.
Perjury is someone giving false testimony under oath. When questioned as a witness by the examining magistrate in June, Martijn T. said that after the night of the fights, he didn’t speak to the other young mean about everyone’s role in the brawls. He went to bed after a glass of water, he said.
Two weeks ago, T.’s lawyer confronted him with new footage found by the police. The images were recorded in the villa where the suspects were staying.
The police found the video and several photos on Lars van den H.’s Snapchat account in August. The video shows Van den H. filming the injuries to his knuckles. “We just had a group fight.” he wrote in the caption. He then pointed the camera at others in the villa, including T.
After being questioned in the court in Lelystad on Thursday, Martijn T. was removed. He will soon be questioned by the police.
T.’s lawyer tried to prove that there was no question of perjury. According to the lawyer, T. only remembered that conversation after being confronted by the video.
Martijn T. is the second suspect to end up back in pre-trial custody since the trial around Heuvelman’s death started on Tuesday. On the first day, the court sent Mees T. back to jail for violating the conditions of his release - he used cannabis and went abroad with friends.
Two suspects have expressed regret during the trial. On Tuesday, Kaan B. (19) from Hilversum called the nightlife violence he and his friends were involved in terrible. On Wednesday, Hein B. (19) called it the “stupidest mistake” of his life.
Reporting by ANP