Dutch prosecutors appeal acquittal in Stint cargo bike crash that killed four children
Dutch prosecutors announced Thursday they are appealing the acquittal of two Stint manufacturers following a deadly accident on September 20, 2018, when a train struck a Stint cargo bike at a railway crossing in Oss, killing four children. The appeal comes two weeks after a court in Den Bosch cleared the Bilthoven-based producer and his business partner of intentionally placing a dangerous vehicle on the market.
The accident involved a Stint electric cargo bike used by a daycare worker to transport five children to school. The worker later testified that she lost control of the vehicle and could not brake, sending the cargo bike onto the railway crossing at Oss-West station, where it was struck by a train. Four children—8-year-old Dana, 4-year-old Liva, 6-year-old Fleur, and 4-year-old Kriss—were killed. An 11-year-old sibling, Indy, along with the childcare worker, was seriously injured.
“The Public Prosecution Service cannot align itself with the court’s considerations and conclusions,” the OM said after reviewing the verdict. The court found the evidence insufficient to prove that the producers deliberately marketed a hazardous vehicle.
However, it ruled they were guilty of falsifying documents by falsely claiming the Stint met European safety standards, though no penalties were imposed.
Families of the victims expressed mixed feelings over the acquittal. Their spokesperson, Lars Walder from Namens de Familie, said, “They are determined and hope for justice, and at the same time, some are apprehensive because this will undoubtedly take a long time again.”
Investigations conducted in the years following the crash revealed numerous technical defects in the Stint cargo bike. Reports noted the vehicle lacked a proper brake system and emergency brake, had a faulty throttle, and had no start-up protection.
In December 2025, prosecutors had demanded prison sentences exceeding five years for the company owners and fines of 225,000 euros and 135,000 euros for the two companies, arguing that safety issues with the Stint had been known since May 2017 but were not disclosed by the entrepreneurs, Edwin Renzen and Peter Noorlander.
