Covid conspiracy theorist Willem Engel convicted of sedition on appeal

The leader of the group Viruswaarheid, Willem Engel, has been sentenced to 60 hours of community service on appeal. The Court of Appeal in The Hague found Engel guilty of sedition during the coronavirus pandemic.

Engel published a livestream on Facebook in 2020 after the court had banned a Viruswaarheid demonstration. In it, he announced that he would demonstrate in a personal capacity on the Malieveld in The Hague and invited "everyone to come.” With that, the court thinks that he called on followers to take part in an illegal demonstration.

A previous demonstration by the group had led to violent incidents between the demonstrators and police. The court ruled that Engel had violated public order with this call.

The court also ruled that Engel was guilty of sedition with a tweet from November 2021. The tweet attempted to convince people to break the laws set during the coronavirus period, the court thinks.

The Public Prosecution Service had recommended 140 hours of community service and a conditionally suspended prison sentence of three months. The court acquitted Engel of four other statements charged. Partly for this reason, a lower community service sentence was imposed than the Public Prosecution Service had demanded.

The court acquitted Engel of most charges in the beginning of 2023. He was sentenced to a conditionally suspended prison sentence of one month after prosecutors recommended 180 hours of community service and a three month conditionally suspended jail sentence.

Engel was not sentenced to a suspended jail sentence on this occasion. "The court does not impose a conditional prison sentence because the coronavirus pandemic and the associated restrictions and the discussion about them are a thing of the past,” the court explained.