Former patient on trial says she cannot recall stabbing mental health worker
A former patient on trial for the fatal stabbing of a mental health worker told the court in Maastricht that she killed her because of her illness. Court experts testified she suffers from schizophrenia and was in a psychotic episode at the time, prosecutors and witnesses said, according to L1.
At the first hearing, 31-year-old Meriam K. from Brunssum said she cannot recall the stabbing itself. “But when I saw blood on the knife, I was shocked at what I had done,” K. testified. She said she later threw the knife into a pond on the clinic grounds, where police recovered it. K. also said she carried the knife for her own safety.
According to her testimony, K. had been angry with Vrancken, her former treatment provider at Mondriaan, because she believed Vrancken had stolen her hair. “I was very angry with her. Then I had a rage attack, and from that moment I remember nothing. I killed her because of my illness,” she said.
Witnesses told the court that K. had been following Vrancken and other employees for about half an hour before the attack. Security footage described during the hearing showed K. trailing Vrancken and her colleagues before stabbing her after they left the clinic restaurant. Experts have declared K. severely diminished in responsibility.
She has been treated at Mondriaan since age 11, has schizophrenia, and a history of hallucinations and delusions, partly linked to past soft drug use. She also has an extensive criminal record, including conditional sentences for vandalism and threats. Specialists recommended compulsory psychiatric treatment with extra supervision.
K. has lived for several months in a Skaeve Huse residence on the clinic grounds, housing for individuals who require supervision but are allowed outside access. She previously made confusing claims in court, including that she was the granddaughter of Willem van Oranje.
The stabbing prompted a two-minute work stoppage on May 2 by healthcare workers at Mondriaan and other institutions, including Lionarons, Care+ in Limburg, and Pro Persona in Gelderland and Utrecht, to honor Vrancken and protest rising violence against healthcare staff. NU’91, a healthcare union, called for stronger protective measures, with chairman Femke Merel van Kooten asking, “How many victims must there be?”
