While Katrina was dominating the headlines all over the world, another scandal has occupied the Dutch media: the story of an innocent man (31) that was convicted to 18 years imprisonment for the murder of a 10 year old girl. A murder that he did not commit. A fact wellknow by the district attorney and the NFI (national forensic institute, the Dutch equivalent to CSI). Still, they put him in prison. More disturbing: there is evidence that this happens more often than we all think.
As it turns out the DA knew all along that the person he was going to convict was innocent. Based on DNA evidence, the man the police caught, could not have done it. But by not putting that evidence in the case file, neither judge or the lawyer of the man had access to this important evidence.
What happened is, that the man that got convicted (Kees B.) was actually a witness: he found the victims (a young boy survided the attack, a little 10 year old girl, Nienke Kleiss, didn’t). Kees called the police on his cellphone. Police arrived and got a good description of the attacker from the 10-year old.
During the investigation it turned out however, that Kees B. was a wellknown paedophile. Since this made him suspicious, the police arrested him and started to question him. Under all the pressure he first admitted to the crime, but later said he did so under the pressure of the police.
Allthough there was no direct evidence, just some circumstancial, Kees got convicted to 18 years of inprisonment and after serving that he would have been treated as well (called TBS). Kees tried to fight his conviction, and his appeal got some more press.
Peter R. de Vries, a Dutch TV-journalist specialized in crime, thought the case was fishy and did some investigation. When he did so, he found some weird things. For instance the fact that he did not fit the description that the surviving victim gave, nor did he recognize him. Also the whole timeline of the case was shaky at least: De Vries proved that there was no way that Kees could have had enough time to commit the crime: especially since there was a second witness on the scene right when he called 112 (the Dutch equivalent to 911).
To most people however, it seemed like a open and shut case: a bad paedophile just got convicted and he deserved to rot in prison.
Then something strange happens: in September 2004 another paedophile, Wik H., confesses the murder as well. He just got caught for two other child molesting cases. If he did it, how could Kees have done it?
Then the whole case snowballs and suddenly it turns out there was more DNA evidence. This DNA evidence did match the one from H. and not Kees.
Kees got out of prison in 2004. But the case went on and it turned out that both the police, the DA and also the NFI knew all along! They just kept this crucial DNA evidence out of the files. They knew they convicted an innocent man. Sure, Kees is a paedophile, but he never killed someone.
Still, those responsible for this ill turn of justice have not resigned. And worse: no one ever even apologized for the matter.
Now, don’t get me wrong: I do not have one ounce of sympathy for paedophiles. But I don’t believe that convicting innocent people is the way to handle things.
As it turns out the whole case upsets the Dutch belief in the Dutch judicial system a lot: 48% of all people say now they do not trust the police and DA anymore.
For me the big question is: how many other people are in jail innocent?
That’s justice for ya… Man, that Natalee Holloway wore thin as the American media danced away from all the corruption in the Bush administration. I don’t know how the Dutch Media portrays this, but most Americans are sick to death from what we see everyday.
Bush does NOT represent me, and goes against every value I, and many others, hold.