A report stating that Amsterdam is losing the fight against organized crime led to alarmed and shocked reactions from politicians in The Hague. Parliamentarians call on the government to invest more into combating this issue, the Telegraaf reports.
The report stated that the authorities have little insight into drug economy and -crime, that the police have basically given up the fight against drugs, and that the judiciary is failing to tackle real crime structures.
Prisoners serving sentences of institutionalized psychiatric care may soon have to wear an ankle monitor when they are on leave from the psychiatric clinic treating them. Minister Sander Dekker for Legal Protection announced that the government will experiment with this starting in the fall, RTL Nieuws reports.
The electronic monitoring tool is currently only used in the prison system. The ankle monitor keeps track of where the wearer is, recording his or her movements.
One in 20 elderly people in the Netherlands face abuse. Ministers Hugo de Jonge of Public Health and Sander Dekker for Legal Protection launched a television campaign to increase awareness on how to recognize and report the abuse of the elderly people. New commercials for the campaign will start appearing on television this week.
The Fivoor clinic in Den Dolder, from where dangerous psychiatric prisoner Peter M. escaped on Saturday, agreed with Minister Sander Dekker for Legal Protection that it will send in daily reports about everything that happened at the clinic for the next three months. The forensic psychiatric clinic also promised to immediately report anything out of the order happening, the Ministry of Justice and Security, which covers Legal Protection, confirmed to AD.
The Ministry for Legal Protection implemented a number of extra measures and stricter rules for psychiatric institutions that treat prisoners following the murder of Anne Faber, Minister Sander Dekker said in a letter to parliament. The 25-year-old woman was raped and killed by Michael P., who was being treated by such a clinic at the time for the last part of the prison sentence he received for raping two minor girls.
With the help of a new computer system, the Dutch police managed to track down and detain 585 people who still had to serve a prison sentence in the past seven months. A new app allows police officers to immediately check whether someone they stop still have outstanding penalties against them, and immediately take them into custody if they still have to go to prison, AD reports.
Minister Sander Dekker for Legal Protection called reports that psychiatric prisoners may be involved in the killing of a 72-year-old man in his Lelystad apartment "disturbing".
The victim was found dead in his home on Sunday. The police believe he was killed somewhere during the weekend of April 19th to 21st. Two men aged 48 and 35 from Almere were arrested for involvement in his murder.
The police arrested a second suspect in connection with the death of a 72-year-old man in his Lelystad home. Like the first suspect arrested in this case, 35-year-old Michael B. was previously sentenced to institutionalized psychiatric treatment, the Telegraaf reports.
72-year-old Gerrit Thomassen was found dead in his home on Rode Klif in Lelystad on Sunday. On Monday the police arrested 48-year-old Jan van K. on suspicion of involvement in Thomassen's death.
Minister Sander Dakker for Legal Protection acknowledged in a parliamentary debate on Wednesday that he bears political responsibility for mistakes made in the treatment of Michael P., the man who raped and murdered 25-year-old Anne Faber from Utrecht in 2017. At the same time he asked parliament to trust him to also solve the problems. He survived the debate, NU.nl reports.
"I feel the responsibility in my every fiber", Dekker said. "One of my most important tasks is to protect society from people like Michael P."
Minister Sander Dekker for Legal Protection is taking measures after a damaging report from the Dutch Safety Board on the case surrounding the rape and murder of 25-year-old Anne Faber. The first step he took was to withdraw certain freedoms from 21 prisoners after an initial screening, NU.nl reports.
Minister Sander Dekker for Legal Protection is working on a law that will prevent judges from only giving community service sentences to people who used violence against aid workers and police officers. In all cases these offenders have to go to jail, even if only for a day, Dekker announced on Tuesday, AD reports.
Videos surfaced showing detainees having a party in a Dutch prison. The two videos were recorded on a smartphone in the Zuyderbos penitentiary in Heerhugowaard in October last year, the Telegraaf reports.
The videos show prisoners filming each other while they dance and rap. They can also be seen throwing kitchen furniture. What can't be seen on the videos, is any intervention by prison guards.
The police raided three buildings belonging to the Jehovah's Witnesses last month in an investigation into sexual abuse within the religious community. Four homes were also searched, with the goal of finding documents on internal investigations, NU.nl reports.
A video Minister Sander Dekker for Legal Protection posted on Twitter after a working visit to insurer Achmea caused some angry reactions, especially from lawyers. They called it an "promotional video", "shameless", and "unworthy of a Minister", RTL Nieuws reports.
The Public Prosecution Service launched a criminal investigation into sexual abuse in the faith community of Jehovah's Witnesses, Minister Sander Dekker for Legal Protection said in a letter to parliament. Five people from different regions in the Netherlands filed declarations of sexual abuse, he said, ANP reports.
"At the Public Prosecutor, the declarations were carefully dealt with by specialist sex crime officers in the regions", the Minister said. He previously called on victims to file declarations so that a criminal investigation can be launched.
A disruption at telecom provider Tele2 over the weekend turned off hundreds of ankle monitors. The disruption started late on Friday morning. By Sunday morning, all ankle monitors were again connected with the control room, the Ministry of Justice and Security said, RTL Nieuws reports.
The government is planning to close four prisons in the Netherlands, sources told newspaper AD. The prisons need to close because there are too many empty cells in the country, but this will also cause job losses for prison staff.
The prisons in Zoetermeer, Zeist, Almere and Zwaag are on the list to be closed, according to the newspaper. By choosing those prisons, the government hopes to save prisons outside the Randstad, where prison workers will have a harder time finding new work.
From Friday the Dutch police will assess the vulnerability of each victim who reports a crime. This is to ensure that the victim does not fall victim to another crime and gets the help he or she needs, NOS reports.
Police officers will assess whether the victim is at risk of being threatened or if there is a chance of retaliation after the report is filed. Where necessary, the police and Public Prosecutor can then immediately take measures, like issuing restraining orders or protecting the victim in another way.
The number of reports of sexual abuse within the Jehovah's Witnesses now stands at 267, Reclaimed Voices, a foundation that manages the hotline for this type of abuse, said to newspaper Trouw.
Criminals sentenced to prison for at least six years, may soon no longer automatically be eligible for release after serving two thirds of their sentence. Minister Sander Dekker of Legal Protection is submitting a legislative proposal to that effect on Tuesday, he said to newspaper AD.
"We want to increase the credibility of imposed sentences", he said to the newspaper. "If someone gets 18 years after a terrible crime, but is already out twelve years later, then that is difficult to explain."
Internal security is below par in six penitentiary institutions in the Netherlands. They don't have enough well trained staff and the handling of detainees leaves much to be desired, the Justice and Security Inspectorate said in a report after inspecting the six prisons, ANP reports.
Ministers Hugo de Jonge of Public Health and Sander Dekker of Medical Care presented an action plan to improve youth care in the Netherlands. "The interests of the child are still too often not the first priority", the Ministers said, NOS reports.
In the coming years the Dutch government, judges and criminal lawyers will take more measures to protect victims of crime and give them more rights, Minister Sander Dekker for Legal Protection announced on Thursday - the European day of the victim. One such measure is to oblige suspects of violent- or sex crimes to attend their trial and listen to the victims should they choose to speak, NOS reports.
Today is the Rutte III government's 100th day in office. Yet many of the ministers in the government are still just as unknown to the Dutch public as when they took office, according to a study by Kantar Public, BNR reports.
The most anonymous members of the Rutte III government are Ingrid van Engelshoven, Minister of Education, Culture and Science, and Minister Bruno Bruins for Medical Care and Sports. Only 7 percent of respondents knew who they are. Hugo de Jonge, Minster of Public Health, Welfare and Sports, did slightly better with 12 percent of respondents knowing who he is.
