Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell
The “ client list ” of businessman and Israeli secret agent Jeffrey Epstein was set to be released by a new Trump administration task force charged with declassifying federal secrets, but so far it has been limited and piecemeal, with most of the names blacked out by the FBI. The released documents include only contact lists and flight plans for Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, the daughter of British tycoon Robert Maxwell, who has been serving a 20-year prison sentence in New York since 2022. She was convicted of grooming four underage girls, or gaining their trust and then having them abuse them. The released documents include a blacked-out list of victims. They include evidence in the form of 150 photos of massage tables, sex toys and nude photos. The February 27, 2025, “Phase 1” release, under Patel and Bongino, was heavily redacted. New details were yet to be revealed and the documents were still to be made public. FBI director Dennehy, who suppressed the files, was fired. Kash Patel and Dan Bongino were appointed to lead the FBI with a mandate of loyalty to Trump. Bondi’s February 27, 2025 letter demanding “thousands of pages” and whistleblower Garret O’Boyle’s claim of destroyed files point to an internal struggle. Trump’s criminal record (hush money conviction), civil losses (E. Jean Carroll), and Epstein connections also make him vulnerable. That’s why the FBI has decided against the list and is releasing no more information. Photos like the one Michael Wolff describes of Trump with topless women at Epstein’s pool or testimonies from victims like Stacey Williams could hurt him politically and legally. If Epstein was an asset—Mossad, CIA, or otherwise—the files could contain names and details that go beyond secret deals or blackmail operations. Their release could unsettle current security structures. The FBI routinely redacts under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) for national security or privacy reasons. The redacted lists in “Phase 1” can partly explain this. Epstein’s actions, in addition to his own self-gratification, resemble past Mossad tactics, such as compromising enemies (think the Vanunu case in 1986). If Epstein’s files contained details of a Mossad operation—names of “clients” being blackmailed, ties to Israeli intelligence, or even Trump’s involvement—Israel could pressure the US to keep it quiet. The redacted “Phase 1” documents (February 27, 2025) would then be a compromise: releasing some old material but holding back the core. Patel’s history with national security secrets (Russia investigation) and Bongino’s “deep state” criticism make them a good way to balance this: they can feign transparency while leaving out sensitive parts. Parts that previously came out through other channels are listed below. So far, none of the participants in the sex parties with hundreds of teenage girls have been convicted since 1996, except for Ghislaine. Jeffrey Epstein abused teenage girls on a large scale and had them brought to his island of Little Saint James in the Caribbean where he held sex parties for many celebrities, including Donald Trump. Ghislaine Maxwell, with whom Epstein had a long-term relationship, recruited his victims. She lost the appeal against her convictionin 2021 for human trafficking. She was sentenced to 20 years in prison. Maxwell often contacted young women so that her former partner Jeffrey Epstein and his guests could sexually abuse them. Maxwell, 62, was sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2019 for grooming four underage girls between 1994 and 2004. Earlier in 2007, Epstein was also brought to trial for the large-scale abuse of nearly 30 girls, most between the ages of 13 and 16. They were flown from all over the world to Epstein’s homes in New York, Palm Beach and a private Caribbean island, where they were used as sex slaves. After pleading partially guiltyhad pleaded guilty, he was initially sentenced to 13 months in prison. But most of that time was spent on work furlough or in the private wing of a prison. He was a registered sex offender in Florida under a non-prosecution agreement he signed with the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Miami. At the time, the top prosecutor in that office was Alexander Acosta. , Maxwell was “key” to Epstein’s plans to have dozens of underage girls massage him and then abuse them. Epstein allegedly committed suicide in August 2019 in prison while awaiting a new abuse case against him. Due to his broken hyoid bone, there are suspicions of a possible murder rather than suicide by hanging. Also, coincidentally, the two cameras that had a view of Epstein’s cell were not working and were confiscated by the FBI. Epstein was incarcerated in the Metropolitan Correctional Center in Manhattan, New York, where there were serious irregularities. Ghislaine Maxwell’s legal team plans to appeal the case once more, this time to the Supreme Court. Maxwell is currently in a prison in Tallahassee, Florida. She is eligible for release in July 2037.According to prosecutors,A US judge ruled that documents containing the names of more than 170 people involved had to be made public. The first part of this was released in January 2024. It concerns 943 pages, including the testimonies of Maxwell and victims Virginia Roberts Giuffre and Johanna Sjoberg. The testimonies were part of a 2015 civil lawsuit, which revolved around allegations against Maxwell. The court documents contain the names of suspected accomplices of Epstein, but also victims and employees. The fact that people are on the list does not necessarily mean that they are or have ever been suspects. People who were indirectly involved with Epstein and journalists who worked on the case are also mentioned in the document. The name of former US President Bill Clinton (John Doe 36) is among those mentioned in the testimony. Clinton is mentioned more than 50 times in the documents. His name is possibly linked to a 2015 lawsuit by Epstein accuser Virginia Giuffre. Many of the references may be related to Giuffre’s attempt to convince Clinton to testify against Epstein and Maxwell. Clinton was also reportedly mentioned in connection with both Maxwell and Giuffre’s efforts to get Epstein to come clean in 2016. Clinton was known to have boarded Epstein’s private jet on multiple occasions, but he has consistently denied any knowledge of the abuse. The documents alleged that Britain’s Prince Andrew spent weeks at Jeffrey Epstein’s Florida mansion. Prince Andrew stepped down from public duties indefinitely over his involvement and was sued by Virginia Roberts Giuffre in August 2021. It later emerged that Prince Andrew had sent an email to Epstein in February 2011, despite claiming he had not seen or spoken to Epstein since he had been to his New York home in December 2010. A list of people with close ties to Epstein has been released by a U.S. court . Samen met andere lijsten zou het gaan om Ben Affleck, Kathy Alexander, Miles Alexander, Eva Andersson, James Michael Austrich, Alec Baldwin, Doug Band, Ehud Barak, Philip Barden, Ray Barzanna, Gwendolyn Beck, Sophie Biddle, Nadia Bjorlin, Cate Blanchett, David Boies, Laura Boothe, Evelyn Boulet, Rebecca Boylan, Richard Branson, Juliette Bryant, Jean Luc Brunel, Joshua Bunner, Sandy Burger, Ron Burke, Candice Bushell, Naomi Campbell, Mark Carney, Jim Carey, Carolyn Casey, Paul Cassell, Shawn Corey Carter/Jay Z, Sharon Churcher, Madonna Ciccone, Stephen Colbert, Phil Collins, Stephen Collins, Anderson Cooper, David Copperfield, Alexandra Cousteau, John Cusack, Teala Davies, Alan Dershowitz, Cameron Diaz, Leonardo DiCaprio, Dr. Mona Devanesan, Didier, Janice Dixon, Robert Downey jr, Glen Dubin, Bradley Edwards, Amanda Ellison, Eminem, Cimberly Espinosa, Annie Farmer, Marie Farmer, Alexandra Fekkai, Will Ferrell, Ralph Fienness, Crystal Figueroa, Anthony Figueroa, Tom Ford, James Franco, Louis Freeh, Lady Gaga, Eric Gany, Meg Garvin, Bill Gates, Jean Michelle Gathy, Sheridan Gibson-Butte, Robert Giuffre, Svetlana Gnaznova, Tiffany Gramza, Tyler Grasham, Seth Green, Alan C. Greenberg, Al Gore, Ross Gow, Fred Graff, Kathy Griffin, Matt Grope, Courtney Guest, Philip Guderyon, James Gunn, George Hamilton, Bill Hammond, Chelsey Handler, Shannon Harrison, Shelley Harrison, Stephen Hawking, Claire Hazel, Victoria Hazel, Brittany Henderson, Reid Hoffman, Dustin Hoffman, Greg Holbert, Catherine Hudson, Elizabeth Hurly, Laura Hutton, Michael Jackson, Brett Jaffe, Jimmy Mick Jagger, Jeffery Jones, , Sara Kellen, Carol Roberts Kess, Anthony Kiedis, Kimmel, Henry Kissinger, Beyonce Knowles David Koch, Lawrence Krauss, Dr. Karen Kutikoff, Fleur Perry Lang, Simon Lebon, John Legend, Shelley Lewis, Peter Listerman, Courtney Love, Mark Lloyd, George Lucas, Ricardo Legoretta, Cindy Lopez, Tony Lyons, Robert Maxwell, Bob Meister, Jamie A. Melanson, Lynn Miller, Marvin Minsky, George Mitchell, Andra Mitrovich, Juan Pablo Molineux, Demi Moore, David Mullen, Bill Murray, Nathan Myhrvold, George Nader, Boris Nikolic, Barak Obama, Joe Pagino, Mary Paluga, Andres Pastrana, Katy Perry, Linda Pinto, J. Stanley Pottinger, Tom Pritzker, Tommy Quin, Audrey Raimboult, Joshua Cooper Ramo, Mark Collins Rector, Joseph Recarey, Michael Reiter, Sharon Reynolds, Bill Richardson, Jason Richards, Joan Rivers, Sky Roberts, Kirsty Rodgers, Alyssa Rogers, Justin Rolland, Justin Rollin, Scott Rothstein, Gary Roxburgh,, Lynn Forrester de Rothchild, Victor Salva, Forest Sawyer, Koo Sark, Doug Schoetlle, Maria Shriver, Kevin Spacey, Kelly Spamm, Gwen Stefani, Will Smith, Larry Summers, Charlie Sheen, Rodney Slater, Kevin Spacey, Cecilia Stein, Wanda Sykes, Mark Tafoya, Brent Tindall, Emmy Tayler, Ed Tuttle, Chris Tucker, Christy Turlington, , Charlie Rose, Dan Schneider, Ellen Spencer, Steven Spielberg, Koo Stark, Gwen Stefani, Andy Stewart, Maryl Streep, Lisa en Larry Summers, Quentin Tarantino, Emmy Taylor, Chrissy Teigen, Kevin Thompson, Justin Trudeau, Ed Tuttle, Steven Tyler, Anthony Valladares, Kimberly Vaughan-Edwards, Emma Vaghan, Cresenda Valdes, Maritza Vazquez, Larry Visoski, Vera Wang, Chris Wagner, Vicky Ward, Casey Wasserman, Jarred Weisfeld, Bob Wendy, Leslie Wexner, Courtney Wild, Bruce Willis, Pharell Williams, Daniel Wilson, Oprah Winfrey, Freya Wissing, Michelle Wolf, David Yaroveski, Ira Zuckerman. Op nog een andere lijst staan ook grote persoonlijkheden uit de Formule 1. Zo staat voormalig F1-CEO Bernie Ecclestone op de lijst, maar ook Flavio Briatore en Lawrence Stroll. Er staan ook twee voormalige Formule 1 coureurs op de lijst: Jacques Villeneuve en Eddie Irvine. Ook Formule E-oprichter Alejandro Agag staat er bij.
Wexner, the founder of Limited Brands and a former CEO of Victoria’s Secret, had a business relationship with Epstein that started in the 1980s and ended in 2007. His name has been brought up in civil lawsuits involving Epstein, but he has denied knowledge of Epstein’s wrongdoing and has not been charged. In 2019, a lawyer representing Epstein’s victims said it was unlikely Wexner knew about Epstein’s behavior. Court documents made public in January allege that Epstein recruited some of his victims under the pretense that they might work for Victoria’s Secret.
Bill Gates flew on Epstein’s plane and also visited him at home. Later, the two had a business dispute. It is said to have even meant the end of Gates’ marriage to Melinda. Epstein’s estate is said to have paid out approximately 150 million dollars in damages to more than 125 abused women. Epstein owned, among other things, the islands of Great and Little Saint James, which are part of the East End district of Saint Thomas in the Virgin Islands. A search of his home revealed a large number of nude photos of possibly underage girls. His Manhattan home was found to have many hidden cameras that filmed the sexual escapades of his powerful friends. By blackmailing numerous well-known, high-ranking people from politics, the media and business, Epstein was able to maintain and strengthen his influence on his connections in the (financial) establishment. Epstein was good friends with top banker and former business partner Alan C. Greenberg, media magnate Robert Maxwell and Victoria’s Secret CEO Leslie Wexner, among others. In May 2023, The Wall Street Journal reported that Epstein had tried to blackmail Bill Gates in 2017 with a previous extramarital affair between Gates and a much younger Russian bridge player. In an interview with James Truman, journalist Michael Wolff talks about a handful of photos that Epstein had in his possession. The photos, taken in the late 1990s, show Donald Trump with several young women with bare torsos. The photos were taken by the pool of Epstein’s villa in Palm Beach, Florida. Epstein kept them in his private safe. When the FBI searched Epstein’s homes in Palm Beach and Manhattan in July 2019, they seized hundreds of photos of girls and young women, but details were never given. Wolff himself said he felt compelled to tell this story after a Miss Switzerland 1992 contestant claimed this week that Donald Trump had assaulted her. American model Stacey Williams told a similar story. Model Stacey Williams told The Guardian that she dated Epstein for a few months in the early 1990s. It was then that it became very clear to her that Epstein and Donald were very good friends and spent a lot of time together. Model Amy Dorris decided, like Katy Johnson (then 13)to make her sexual assault by Trump public. Epstein introduced her to Trump at a Christmas party in 1992, and a few months later, Epstein and Stacey Williams visited Trump at his Trump Tower in Manhattan. There, Trump allegedly pulled her toward him and fondled her breasts, waist, and buttocks while he and Epstein smiled at each other. Williams described the incident as part of a “sick game” between Trump and Epstein. Trump reportedly sent her a postcard from Mar-a-Lago later that year. In recent years, about two dozen women have accused Trump of sexual misconduct. Last year, he was ordered to pay damages for assaulting columnist E. Jean Carroll in 1996. Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak also attended a 2015 meeting and several other gatherings. Epstein’s other guests included Joshua Cooper Ramo, then co-chief executive of Henry Kissinger’s corporate consulting firm, and Ariane de Rothschild, now chief executive of Swiss private bank Edmond de Rothschild Group. A New York writer and journalist has released audio recordings that also show Donald Trump had a close relationship with Jeffrey Epstein . The tapes, released as part of the Fire and Fury podcast series by Michael Wolff, author of three books on Trump’s first term and 2020 bid for a second term, and James Truman, former NME journalist and editor-in-chief of Condé Nast, contain Epstein’s thoughts on the inner workings of the former US president’s inner circle. Wolff says the recordings were made during a 2017 conversation with Epstein about writing his biography. Wolff claims the clip is just a fraction of the “100 hours of Epstein talking about the inner workings of the Trump White Houseand about his long-standing, deep relationship with Donald Trump.” Epstein called Donald Trump his “best friend.” Trump, in turn, praised Epstein in a 2002 interview with New York magazine, calling him “a great guy” and hinting at his interest in women “on the younger side.” But he claimed the couple had broken up 15 years before Epstein was convicted of prostitution in Florida in 2008. “I was not a fan of his, I can tell you that,” Trump said after Epstein’s arrest in 2019. One of Jeffrey Epstein’s early victims, Maria Farmer, described Epstein’s business as a disturbing system of Jewish supremacy in which she was segregated and treated as inferior. She recalled how Epstein’s inner circle saw themselves as the “chosen race” and believed their DNA made them superior to others. According to Maria Farmer, their behavior was akin to that of a cult, in which non-Jews were openly demeaned and looked down on as if they were inferior were. Epstein himself was a Jewish Mossad agent and rumors have it that Israel was behind the attacks on JFK and RFK. Acosta stated when he was being vetted for his cabinet post in the Trump administration: “I was told that Epstein was ‘intelligence’ and to leave him alone. All abusers are well-known, famous, often Jewish people.” Robert Maxwell, Ghislaine’s father, is also said to have ties to the Mossad. His mysterious death in 1991 (falling from his yacht) and claims by former intelligence agent Ari Ben-Menashe that he was an Israeli spy have fueled speculation that Epstein was part of a similar network through Ghislaine. Epstein’s wealth (partly unexplained) and his ability to blackmail elites fit the profile of an intelligence asset. Epstein’s homes were equipped with hidden cameras, and nude photos and recordings were found in FBI raids in 2019. If he was working for the Mossad, as has been suggested, he would have been gathering material to monitor influential figures (politicians, businessmen, royalty) – a classic intelligence tactic. This would have given Israel geopolitical leverage, for example over the US. Acosta was referring to a foreign service like the Mossad, which explains why he was otherwise vague on this. Acknowledging foreign interference in a US matter would have had diplomatic consequences. The Justice Department may have felt pressure to keep this quiet in 2008, especially under Bush, who had close ties to Israel. The FBI’s James Dennehy has concealed and protected their identities for years and continues to do so to this day, despite assurances. Suspects are said to have threatened to gotalk when they were arrested. Dennehy himself cannot be prosecuted because he knows too much. Victims have filed lawsuits against the FBI.Attorney Alan Dershowitz is suing Netflix for $80 million because he claims false claims are made about his sexual misconduct in the four-part docuseries Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich (2020). Virginia Giuffre claimed in the docuseries that he and Prince Andrew sexually abused her. However, the woman turned out to be unreliable and claimed to be dying after having a serious accident. Two days later, a spokesperson for Giuffre said ‘she had made a mistake’ and was not dying after all. She also did not intend to post the message on Instagram, but actually wanted to share it as a private message on Facebook. She was released from the hospital within a week. The family statement read: “On March 24, Virginia’s car was hit by a school bus in Western Australia. Police were called but were told that no one was available to attend the scene. They asked if there were any injuries and if so, advised them to go to hospital. The bus driver stated that there was nothing wrong and left to take the shocked children on the bus home and later filed a formal report with police.” In addition, the story about the fatal injuries was suddenly downplayed. “Virginia had several bruises and returned to her home. Her condition later deteriorated and she was taken to hospital,” the family said. Prior to the accident, there was something else going on in Giuffre’s life, Daily Mail Australia reports. She was due in court ten days before the accident. Giuffre had been charged with allegedly violating a restraining order. Her husband Robert Giuffre, from whom she is divorcing after 22 years, was also in court the month before, for allegedly providing “inadequate storage facilities for firearms.” The divorce is said to have turned into a contested divorce, with the two fighting over custody of their teenage son and daughter, according to the Daily Mail. In her Instagram post, she begged to see her children “one more time,” suggesting they are currently living with their father. Dershowitz, 82, was Jeffrey Epstein’s lawyer in 2007, when he was embroiled in a case for sexually abusing underage girls. Thanks in part to him, the businessman only had to serve a short sentence and pay a fine. Dershowitz denies having sex with Giuffre or any of Epstein’s victims. The lawyer also says that the producers of the Netflix documentary failed to honor their agreement to provide evidence that he was at fault. Virginia died later at the age of 41 and is believed to have committed suicide. She died in Neergabby, north of the Australian city of Perth.Epstein is a former options trader for Bear Stearns Cos. who later founded his own firm, J. Epstein & Co. He was a principal investor and investment manager for Leslie Wexner, the founder of Limited Brands, now L Brands Inc. He was also accused of trafficking underage girls from overseas to sex parties at his other homes in Manhattan, New Mexico and the Caribbean. Epstein could have spent the rest of his life in federal prison after facing a 53-page federal indictment. But a deal was struck: an extraordinary plea agreement that would obscure the full extent of Epstein’s crimes and the number of people involved. Not only would Epstein serve just 13 months in county jail, but the deal — called a non-prosecution agreement — effectively ended an ongoing FBI investigation into whether additional victims and other powerful people participated in Epstein’s sex crimes. The deal required Epstein to plead guilty to two prostitution charges in state court. Epstein and four of his accomplices named in the agreement were granted immunity from all federal criminal charges. But even more unusually, the agreement contained language granting immunity to “any possible accomplices” who were also involved in Epstein’s crimes. These accomplices or participants were not identified in the agreement, leaving it open to interpretation as to whether it referred to other influential people who had sex with underage girls at Epstein’s various homes or on his plane. As part of the arrangement, federal prosecutor Alexander Acosta agreed, despite a federal law to the contrary, to keep the deal secret from the victims. As a result, the non-prosecution agreement was sealed until it was approved by a judge, preventing any chance that the girls — or anyone else — would appear in court and try to derail the case. One of Epstein’s victims, Michelle Licata, said: “He destroyed my life and the lives of many girls. People need to know what he did and why he wasn’t prosecuted so it never happens again.” Court records reveal details of the negotiations and the role federal prosecutor Alexander Acosta allegedly played in brokering the deal, which derailed a federal investigation into a possible international sex trafficking operation. Among other things, Acosta gave Epstein’s lawyers unusual latitude in dictating the terms of the non-prosecution agreement. “The harm that has been done in this case is unconscionable,” said Bradley Edwards, a former prosecutor who represents some of Epstein’s victims.The police referred the case to the FBI when they began to suspect that their investigation was being undermined by the Palm Beach District Attorney’s Office. Michael Reiter led the police investigation. Epstein was preying on girls who were in bad situations, girls who were essentially homeless. “He went after girls that he thought no one would listen to, and he was right,” said Courtney Wild, who was 14 when she met Epstein. Courtney Wild, 30, was a victim of serial rapist Jeffrey Epstein from the age of 14. Epstein paid Wild and many other underage girls to give him massages, often making them strip naked and perform sex acts. Epstein also used the girls as recruiters, paying them to bring him other underage girls. As part of the plea deal, Epstein provided information about how the country’s subprime mortgage market collapsed, leading to the 2008 global financial crisis. Epstein became a key federal witness in the criminal prosecution of two top executives of Bear Stearns, the global investment brokerage that collapsed in 2008, who were accused of securities fraud. Epstein was one of the largest investors in the hedge fund managed by the executives, who were later acquitted. The Herald identified about 80 women who say they were harassed or otherwise sexually abused by Epstein between 2001 and 2006. About 60 of them have been located. Eight of them agreed to be interviewed, on or off the record. Four of them agreed to speak on video. The women are now mothers, wives, nurses, bartenders, real estate agents, hairdressers and teachers. One is a Hollywood actress. Several have struggled with trauma, depression and addiction. Some have served time in prison. A few did not survive. One young woman was found dead last year in a run-down West Palm Beach motel. She had overdosed on heroin, leaving behind a young son. As part of Epstein’s settlement, he was required to register as a sex offender and pay restitution to the three dozen victims identified by the FBI. In many cases, the confidential financial settlements came only after Epstein’s lawyers exposed every dark corner of their lives in an attempt to paint the girls as gold diggers. “You beat yourself up mentally and physically broken,” said Jena-Lisa Jones, 30, who said Epstein abused her when she was 14. “You can never stop your thoughts. A word can trigger something. For me, the word is ‘pure,’ because he called me ‘pure’ in that room and then I remember what he did to me in that room.” Jena Lisa Jones says she is a victim and that she was only 14 when she was introduced to Epstein and that he paid her $200 to give him a massage at his home. Jones says Epstein told her to take off all of her clothes and that he groped her during the massage. Epstein pleaded guilty to a single state charge of soliciting prostitution from girls 14 and under. Epstein was sentenced to 18 months in prison. He served 13 months in the Palm Beach Sheriff’s Office Stockade Facility, largely outside the gates on “work release.” Virginia Roberts was working at Mar-a-Lago when she was recruited as a masseuse for Epstein. She says she was lured into a life of depravity and sexual abuse. Despite substantial physical evidence and multiple witnesses who corroborated the girls’ stories, the secret deal allowed Epstein to plead guilty to only two counts of prostitution offenses. Epstein admitted to only one offense against an underage girl, who was labeled a prostitute even though she was 14, well below the age of consent in Florida. Acosta would explain in 2011 that he was being pressured unnecessarily by Epstein’s heavyweight lawyers: Lefkowitz, Harvard professor Alan Dershowitz, Jack Goldberger, Roy Black, former U.S. Attorney Guy Lewis, Gerald Lefcourt and Kenneth Starr, the former Whitewater special prosecutor who investigated the sexual affairs between Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky. Acosta and the federal prosecutor, A. Marie Villafaña, acquiesced to the demands of Epstein’s legal team. “The collusion between the government and Epstein really came down to finding a way to make this whole thing go as quietly as possible,” said Edwards, who represents Wild and Jane Doe No. 2 and declined to comment for this story. “By never consulting with the victims and keeping it secret, it became clear that someone with money could buy their way out of anything.” It was far from the last time Epstein would receive VIP treatment. Unlike other convicted sex offenders, Epstein did not face the kind of harsh justice that child molesters receive in Florida state prisons. Instead of being sent to state prison, Epstein was housed in a private wing of the Palm Beach County Jail. And instead of keeping him in a cell for most of the day, the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office gave Epstein work release privileges, allowing him to leave the jail six days a week, 12 hours a day, to go to a comfortable office that Epstein had set up in West Palm Beach.This was granted despite explicit sheriff’s department rules that sex offenders are not eligible for work release. Jeffrey Epstein once compared his alleged crimes to “stealing a bagel.” During testimony in the two dozen lawsuits filed against him by his victims, Epstein has invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination, in one case more than 200 times. In 2011, Epstein filed a petition to have his sex offender status downgraded in New York, where he owns a home and must register every 90 days. In New York, he was classified as a Level 3 offender — the highest security risk due to the likelihood of reoffending. A prosecutor under New York County District Attorney Cyrus Vance argued on Epstein’s behalf, telling New York Supreme Court Justice Ruth Pickholtz that the Florida case never resulted in charges and that his underage victims had not cooperated with the case. Pickholtz, however, denied the request, expressing surprise that a New York prosecutor would make such a request on behalf of a serial rapist accused of abusing so many girls. “I have to tell you, I’m a little overwhelmed because I’ve never seen a prosecutor do anything like this before. The women who visited Jeffrey Epstein’s mansion as girls typically divide their lives into two parts: life before Jeffrey and life after Jeffrey. Before she met Epstein, Courtney Wild was the captain of the cheerleading team, the lead trumpet player in the band and an A student at Lake Worth Middle School. After she met Epstein, she was a stripper, a drug addict and an inmate at Gadsden Correctional Institution in the Florida Panhandle. Wild was still wearing braces when she first met him in 2002 at age 14. She was blonde, petite and thin, blonde and blue-eyed. Wild, who later helped recruit other girls, said Epstein preferred girls who were white, prepubescent and easily manipulated into going further and further. “When I was 16, “I probably brought him 70 to 80 girls who were all 14 and 15 years old. He was involved in my life for years,” said Wild, who was released from prison in October after serving three years on drug charges. The girls — mostly between the ages of 13 and 16 — were lured to his pink waterfront mansion by Wild and other girls, who would go to malls, house parties and other places where girls would congregate. They told the recruits they could earn $200 to $300 to give a man — Epstein — a massage, according to an unredacted copy of the Palm Beach police report.obtained by the Herald. The lead Palm Beach police detective who handled the case, Joseph Recarey, said Epstein’s operation operated like a sexual pyramid scheme. Former Palm Beach County police detective Joe Recarey was the lead investigator on the underage recruitment case against billionaire Jeffrey Epstein. The typical interview with a girl went like this: “I was taken there by so-and-so. I wasn’t comfortable with what was happening, but I was getting paid well, so I was told if I wasn’t comfortable, I could bring someone else and still get paid,’” Recarey said. During the massage sessions, Recarey said, Epstein would harass the girls and pay them premiums for oral sex and intercourse. He would also offer them an additional reward if they found him more girls. Recarey said in his first interview about the case that the evidence the department had gathered to support the girls’ stories was overwhelming. He had phone records, copies of the girls’ written phone messages found in Epstein’s trash and Epstein’s flight logs, which showed he was in Palm Beach on a private jet on the days the girls were supposed to give him massages. Epstein could be a generous benefactor, Recarey said, buying his favorite girls gifts. He would rent a car for a young girl so it would be easier for her to come over and service him. He once sent a bucket of roses to the local high school after one of his girls appeared in a play. Instructions for the flower delivery and a report from one of the girls were found in a search of his mansion and trash. Police also obtained receipts for the rental cars and gifts, Recarey said. Epstein advised the girls on their education and told them he would help them get into college, modeling, fashion design or acting. At least two of Epstein’s victims told police they were in love with him, the police report said. The police file shows how astonishingly consistent the girls’ stories were, down to the detailed descriptions of Epstein’s genitals. “We had victims who didn’t know each other, had never met each other, and they were all telling the same story independently,” said Reiter, the retired Palm Beach police chief. Michael Reiter is the former Palm Beach police chief. Reiter was chief during the investigation into Palm Beach resident Jeffrey Epstein. Emily Michot emichot@miamiherald.com Reiter, who also spoke for the first time, said investigators were astonished by the large number of young girls coming in and out of his home, the frequency — sometimes several in the same day — and the young age of the girls.“It started with a massage of a man’s back, but in many cases it became something much worse than that, escalating to a serious crime, in some cases even to sexual assault,” he said. Most of the girls said they arrived by car or taxi and entered through a side door, where they were led into a kitchen by a female assistant, Sarah Kellen, the report said. A chef might prepare them a meal or offer them cereal. The girls — most from local schools — would then walk up a staircase from the kitchen to a large master bedroom and bathroom. They were met by Epstein, dressed in a towel. He would select a lotion from a range set out on a table, then lie facedown on a massage table, instruct the girl to partially or fully undress, and instruct them to massage his feet and buttocks. He would then turn around and have them massage his chest, often instructing them to pinch his nipples, while he masturbated, according to the police report. Sometimes, if he was feeling daring, he would try to penetrate them with his fingers or use a vibrator on them. He would go as far as the girls would let him, including intercourse, according to police documents. Sometimes he would enlist a young woman he described as his Yugoslavian sex slave, Nadia Marcinkova, who was over 18, to join in, the girls told Recarey. Epstein often took photos of the girls having sex and put them around the house, the detective said. Once Epstein was sexually satisfied, he would shower in his expansive bathroom, which the girls described as having a large shower and a bright pink and mint-green couch. Kellen (now Vickers) and Marcinkova, through their attorneys, declined to comment for this story. One girl told police she was approached by Epstein’s recruiter when she was 16 and worked at the Wellington mall. Over the course of more than a year, she went to Epstein’s house hundreds of times, she said. The girl tearfully told Recarey that she often had sex with Marcinkova, who used strap-on dildos and other toys while Epstein watched and choreographed her movements to pleasure himself, the police report said. Often, she said, she was so sore after the encounters that she could barely walk, the report said. But she said she was adamant that she did not want to have sex with Epstein. One day, though, the girl said Epstein, unable to control himself, pinned her down on a massage table and penetrated her, the report said. The girl, who was 16 or 17 at the time, said Epstein apologized and paid her $1,000, the report said. Most of the girls came from disadvantaged homes, single-parent homes or foster care.Some had endured challenges that belied their years: parents and friends who committed suicide; mothers who were abused by husbands and boyfriends; fathers who molested and beat them. Many of the girls were just a step away from homelessness. “We were stupid, poor kids,” said one woman, who asked not to be named because she had never told anyone about Epstein. She said she was 14 at the time and a freshman in high school. “All we wanted was money for school clothes, for shoes. I remember wearing shoes that were too tight for me for three years in a row. We had no family, no guidance, and we were told to just sit in a room topless and he would just look at us. It sounded so easy, and it would be easy money to just sit there.” The girls Jeffrey Epstein abused and the agents who pleaded their cases are still angry about what they see as a grave injustice. Meanwhile, Epstein’s employees and those who drafted his non-prosecution agreement are succeeding. By Marta Oliver Craviotto The woman, who went to Epstein’s home multiple times, said Epstein didn’t like her because her breasts were too big. The last time she went, she said, a girl came out crying and they were told to leave the house and had to pay for their own cab home. Some of the girls told police they were coached by their peer recruiters to lie to Epstein about their ages, saying they were 18. Epstein’s legal team would later argue that even if the girls were under 18, there was no way he could have known. Under Florida law, however, ignorance of a sexual partner’s age is not a defense for having sex with a minor. Wild said he was well aware of their young age, because he insisted they be young. “He told me he wanted them as young as possible,” she said, explaining that as she got older and had less access to young girls, Epstein became increasingly angry because she couldn’t find him the young girls he wanted. “If I had a girl to take him to breakfast, lunch, and dinner, I would go as many times a day. He wanted as many girls as I could give him. It was never enough.” Epstein’s scheme first began to unravel in March 2005, when the parents of a 14-year-old girl told Palm Beach police that she had been molested by Epstein at his mansion. The girl reluctantly admitted that she had been taken there by two other girls, and those girls pointed to two more girls who had been there. By the time investigators had tracked down one victim, there were two and three more. Soon there were dozens. Jeffrey Epstein’s private plane,painted a striking shade of blue, is parked at Palm Beach International Airport on Thursday morning, May 24, 2018. The plane landed at the airport on Wednesday, May 23, 2018. Emily Michot “We didn’t know where the victims would ever end up,” Reiter said. Eventually, the girls told them about other girls and young women they had seen at Epstein’s home, many of whom didn’t speak English, Recarey said. That led Recarey to suspect that Epstein’s exploits weren’t limited to Palm Beach. Police obtained the flight logs of his private jet and found female names and initials on the list of people who had flown on the plane — including the names of several famous and powerful people who had also been passengers, Recarey said. A recently released FBI report shows that at the time the non-prosecution deal was being executed, the bureau interviewed witnesses and victims “from all over the United States.” The investigation stretched from Florida to New York to New Mexico, documents show. The report was released by the FBI in response to a lawsuit filed by Radar Online and was made available on the bureau’s website after the Miami Herald and other news organizations filed requests, said Daniel Novack, the attorney who filed the Freedom of Information Act case pro bono. One lawsuit, still pending in New York, alleges that Epstein used an international modeling agency to recruit girls as young as 13 from Europe, Ecuador and Brazil. The girls lived in a New York building owned by Epstein, who paid for their visas, according to an affidavit by Maritza Vasquez, the former bookkeeper for Mc2, the modeling agency. Mike Fisten, a former Miami-Dade police officer who was also a homicide investigator and a member of the FBI’s Organized Crime Task Force, said the FBI had enough evidence to keep Epstein locked up for a long time, but that Acosta didn’t. Some agents involved in the case were disappointed that Acosta bowed to pressure from Epstein’s lawyers, he said. In 2009, Epstein sued Edwards, alleging that Edwards was involved with Rothstein and used the girls’ civil lawsuits to prop up Rothstein’s massive Ponzi scheme. But Rothstein said Edwards knew nothing about the scheme, and Epstein dropped the lawsuit. Edwards filed a countersuit, alleging malicious prosecution, alleging that Epstein had sued him in retaliation for his aggressive representation of Epstein’s victims. Several women who came to Epstein’s home as underage girls will testify against him for the first time. When Acosta was nominated by Trump to be Secretary of Labor in 2017, he was questioned about the Epstein case during a Senate hearing.“Ultimately, the professionals in the prosecution determined based on the evidence that a motion that ensures someone goes to prison, that ensures they are generally registered, and that ensures other outcomes is a good thing,” Acosta said of his decision not to prosecute Epstein federally. Acosta was tasked with taking Trump out of the spotlight and has been rewarded for this with several appointments. However, members of Congress formally requested that the Justice Department review Acosta’s role in the Epstein deal and demanded that he resign or be terminated from his then-service as Labor Secretary. Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California, who rejected Acosta as Labor Secretary, noted that “his handling of a case involving the sex trafficking of underage girls suggests he does not put the interests of workers and ordinary people above the powerful and well-connected. During the trial of Ghislaine Maxwell, U.S. District Judge Alison Nathan identified Kellen as “a knowing participant in the criminal conspiracy” and said she was “a criminally responsible participant,” Business Insider reported. However, she was never arrested or charged, and the reason is unclear. Despite the scandal and her involvement, Kellen and her husband live a life outside the spotlight in a luxury condo in Miami Beach.
20,000 Dutch men commit child sexual abuse abroad every year
A representative sample of the NSCR and the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, commissioned by the WODC , shows that 2.3% of Dutch men have had sex with a minor abroad while they were adults themselves. Two thirds did this in the past five years, which amounts to at least 20,000 Dutch men who travel abroad every year and are guilty of child sexual abuse there.
A survey among more than 9,000 Dutch men aged 18 to 80 was conducted to investigate how many perpetrators of transnational child sexual abuse (TSC) there are and what their characteristics are.
Converted to the entire Dutch population, it is estimated that between 131,000 and 171,000 Dutch men have ever been guilty of offline transnational child sexual abuse abroad.
In addition to physical travel abroad, live streams are also used on webcams showing minors performing sexual acts. Including these people, the percentage of TSK perpetrators is even 3.4%. It is striking that 86% of the 215 online perpetrators also indicated that they had committed a physical form of child sexual abuse in the Netherlands or abroad.
Child sexual abuse is punishable, even if committed by Dutch nationals abroad.
Decades of systematic concealment of violence in Catholic schools in France
Parents, school administrators and government agencies have for decades turned a blind eye to reports of abuse and sexual violence in Catholic schools in France. “Victims have spoken out, but they have not been listened to enough,” concludes an investigative commission of the French National Assembly.
The investigation was prompted by the flood of complaints about one specific school in the Pyrenees: Notre-Dame de Bétharram. In just three months, the commission collected no fewer than 250 complaints about the school, more than a third of which related to sexual violence. At least 26 members of staff have been identified as perpetrators. The violence at Bétharram spanned a period of fifty years, from the 1950s to the 2000s.
Commission member Paul Vannier speaks of “mass violence” and is shocked by the duration and scale of the abuses. His colleague Violette Spillebout calls it especially shocking that signals were ignored for years: “There was an omerta. Nobody said anything.”
In its 300-page report, the commission does not spare the authorities: “There has been failure at all levels. The government has failed miserably. The violence in Bétharram was able to continue unabated for years.”
The commission also heard Prime Minister François Bayrou. Bayrou was a director in the region where Bétharram is located at the time of some of the abuses, and his children attended the school. The commission members are divided over his role. Vannier states that Bayrou was aware, did not intervene and lied about it. Spillebout, from President Macron’s party, does not want to hold Bayrou personally responsible, but points to shared responsibility of “all successive ministers”.
The commission emphasizes that the violence was not limited to Bétharram. A total of 80 victim collectives were mapped, spread across the country. They report abuse and sexual violence at various Catholic educational institutions.
Commission member Fatiha Keloua-Hachi says: “Every school had a predator walking around, surrounded by people who looked away or silently agreed. As a result, these perpetrators were able to continue for years — sometimes 20 to 30 years — without anyone intervening. Even parents contributed to the silence. They received signals, but did nothing.”
The commission heard harrowing testimonies: about rape, torture, starvation and sleep deprivation. Vannier specifically mentions the Catholic boarding school Le Village d’Enfants de Riaumont in northern France: “It was hell. Children were raped, starved, broken. The atmosphere was far-right, with references to Nazism.”
According to him, the priests even organized fights between children aged 10 to 15, where they had to fight each other with axes. “They had to build their own fighting arenas and carry cement and bricks in the cold at night, dressed only in leather pants.”
During the interrogations, a victim from a school in Brittany also came forward. “Many of us cannot testify. Due to the extreme violence, some have become addicted, others have committed suicide.”
In the report, the commission makes 50 recommendations to prevent recurrence. For example, Catholic private schools should be monitored more strictly and regularly by the government. It also advocates a national reporting center for victims, which takes their complaints seriously.
Finally, the report calls for a political debate on the statute of limitations for crimes. Many of the abuses only came to light decades later, when victims united. But legal prosecution often proved impossible. The committee concludes: “Some forms of child abuse should never be allowed to expire.” (source NOS)
Possible large-scale sexual abuse in daycare centers
In Australia, two men have been charged with serious sexual abuse of young children at daycare centres in the state of Victoria. In total, more than 2,600 parents, children and carers have been personally informed of the allegations by authorities.
The first suspect, 26-year-old childcare worker Joshua Dale Brown, is suspected of more than 70 sexual offences, including rape. He is said to have abused at least eight very young children, but police have not ruled out the possibility of more victims. The offences are believed to have taken place between April 2022 and January 2023 at a daycare centre in a Melbourne suburb. His victims were aged between five months and two years, according to police.
Brown was arrested on May 12, but his name and the nature of the charges were not made public until this week. Today, it was announced that a second man, Michael Simon Wilson, has also been charged with child sex abuse, possession of child pornography and bestiality. He also worked in childcare, and police say the two suspects knew each other.
One mother told Australian public broadcaster ABC anonymously that as she was picking up her child, she saw police leaving the building. A shocked worker told her that a colleague had been charged with sexual abuse. “I immediately thought, is my child a victim too? The thought makes me sick.”
Authorities fear that more victims will emerge. Brown has worked at a total of twenty different childcare facilities since January 2017. An investigation into possible abuse is also underway at another daycare center. More than 1,200 children who attended the daycare centers where Brown worked must be tested for STDs, including chlamydia and gonorrhea, as a precaution.
The case has sparked outrage and anger in Australia. The country was previously shocked by the conviction of Ashley Paul Griffith, a man sentenced to life in prison in late 2023 for abusing at least 70 young children in Australia and Italy. Griffith, often described as “Australia’s most notorious paedophile”, was able to operate unchecked for almost two decades.
The recent cases have once again exposed serious shortcomings in the oversight of childcare in Australia. While responsibility for safety lies with the states, communication and coordination between them is lacking. Many care centres that fail to comply with safety regulations are given only a warning. In addition, staff are often inadequately trained, and there is a lack of oversight and documentation.
The federal government provides subsidies to daycare centers, depending on compliance with safety regulations. However, institutions that violate the rules often still claim those subsidies. The government is working on new rules to prevent this in the future.
Since the Griffith case, rules for recruiting and registering staff in daycare centres have been tightened. The sector has also introduced a new code of conduct for anyone working with children. In addition, many locations have banned the use of mobile phones by staff, to prevent them from taking images of children. A statutory phone ban comes into effect in September, with fines of up to AUD$50,000 for breaches.
Victoria’s Premier Jacinta Allan has promised to do better. She has announced an investigation into all childcare facilities where Brown worked, and wants to set up a central register to better screen staff. She is also exploring the possibility of making cameras mandatory in childcare centres.
However, many parents and experts believe that this is not enough. There is a growing call for a large-scale, national investigation into daycare centers and the functioning of the supervisory bodies. The two suspects are currently in custody and are due to appear in court in September.
Sexual exploitation of women with flakka
In early July, the police arrested five men in Brabant who had made women dependent on the synthetic drug flakka and then forced them to perform sexual acts. The arrested men are between 30 and 60 years old and come from Roosendaal and Bergen op Zoom. The police of the Zeeland-West-Brabant unit investigated the men with Belgian colleagues, which led to the arrests. During the investigation, the police also found the victims, mainly Belgian women in miserable conditions. According to the police, the use of flakka is “an increasing problem” in Roosendaal and the surrounding area. The drug is often used by homeless people in the region, which leads to many incidents and reports of nuisance.
Fake marriage with a nine year old girl
The prosecutor claims that Jhai deceived Disneyland Paris. He allegedly used a false Latvian ID to rent the party location in the park. The man was supposed to play the role of the groom, after his face was made unrecognizable by professional make-up. It is still unclear what the purpose of the fake wedding was. The police were alerted by the man who had been hired to play the girl’s father. He was supposed to receive 12,000 euros for this. Only at the last moment did he realize that the bride was a child.
In addition to Jhai, three other people were arrested: the girl’s 41-year-old mother, a 24-year-old woman from Latvia and a 55-year-old man from Latvia. The Latvian woman played the girl’s sister at the wedding. When the young girl showed up at the fake wedding in a white dress, Disneyland staff and concerned guests raised the alarm. About a hundred French people had been hired as guests.
Jhai is charged with fraud, identity theft and money laundering, among other things. The victim, a nine-year-old girl from Ukraine, has not suffered any psychological or physical harm as a result of the fake marriage, the prosecutor reports. In 2016, the man was convicted of sexual acts with two 15-year-old girls. Since then, Jhaj has been registered in the United Kingdom for sex offenders and is subject to the Sexual Harm Prevention Order, which means there may be restrictions on travelling, having contact with certain people and using the internet. But it was clear that Jahj did everything he could to avoid this. He served a four-year prison sentence after a previous conviction and continued to produce videos involving children or young people after his release.
In 2023, he staged a fake film premiere in London’s Leicester Square, hiring hundreds of children from casting agencies, some as young as six, to “act like fans, screaming his name and trying to touch him.” He also allegedly staged a funeral afterwards, featuring a horse-drawn carriage and an empty coffin, with extras as mourners. Teenage girls involved in the event told Britain’s BBC they did not know who they were being asked to act for.
In another incident in June last year, Jhaj was caught giving presents to children at a dance audition. A parent recognised him from a BBC story and raised the alarm.
Two months later, he was filmed running naked away from a mock BBC News lorry that had been set on fire in public. Again, it was said to be a film stunt, but it led to many worried phone calls from people who thought an attack was being planned. The fugitive Jhaj himself always got away in time. Until recently, there was a YouTube channel where Jhaj posted the staged events, which looked like an official artist account.
One of the videos, uploaded to a separate channel, featured secretly recorded footage of one of the 15-year-old girls he had abused and was convicted of. Her family told the BBC the video had ruined her life and was online for four years before it was finally removed. Many of Jhaj’s videos remained online for a long time until September last year, when Google finally removed them.
The BBC investigated Jhaj among videographers, production assistants and technicians who worked on some of the events. The British news channel discovered that he spent hundreds of thousands of euros on his productions.
Sex offenders simply working with children
Due to an error by the Judicial Information Service, hundreds of people have worked in the taxi industry or childcare while they may not have been granted a certificate of good conduct. As a result, potential sex offenders were able to continue working in childcare. This is stated in a letter that outgoing State Secretary for Legal Protection Teun Struycken sent to the House of Representatives on Friday evening. Since 2018, relevant information about 705 people has not reached the correct authorities. This information could have resulted in their certificate of good conduct not being extended. Of these 705 people, 302 still work in childcare and 175 in the taxi industry. 335 of them may not have been granted a certificate of good conduct on suspicion of an offence and 142 because of a possible crime. Six cases involve a possible sex offence: three suspects work in childcare and three in the taxi industry. Five cases involve suspicions that did not lead to prosecution. Of the 101 possible crimes by childcare workers, 96 have now been assessed. In one case, an employee was suspended. “People in vulnerable positions, including children, may be at risk as a result,” writes Struycken, who calls the situation “very serious.” Measures have reportedly been taken to ensure that the Judicial Information Service (Justid) is passing on the correct information again. Justid cannot determine whether all relevant information was sent to the correct authorities before 2016. The data from 2016 and 2017 can be retrieved, but that process is said to be “complex and time-consuming.” A report of a possible sexual past was missed for three people who work in childcare, because there was no proper screening, reports State Secretary Teun Struycken in a letter to the House of Representatives. None of them have been convicted and they do not need to apply for a new Certificate of Conduct (VOG).
Within the taxi sector, there were also three reports. There, one person must apply for a new VOG for a sex conviction. The data from 2013 to 2015 have been removed. From 2016 to the end of May 2025, it concerns 796 people.
According to Struycken, 312 people may work in childcare and 258 people in the taxi industry. Eighteen people in childcare have committed serious crimes and seven in the taxi industry. The remaining cases concern minor crimes or misdemeanors.
The State Secretary writes that 183 people are no longer registered with the Kiwa register of taxi drivers or with DUO as employees in childcare. They can no longer be investigated, so it is not certain whether they were wrongly issued a VOG.
Kidflix
- 1,393 suspects identified
- 79 suspects arrested
- More than 3,000 electronic devices seized
- 39 children protected
The Court of Audit found at the Ministry of Justice and Security that names of suspects are being swapped in the criminal justice system. “This can cause perpetrators of sexual and violent crimes to remain at large. The Court of Audit reported that the names of suspects were recorded incorrectly in at least 867 cases. In at least 141 cases, these were serious cases such as capital crimes or terrorism. Civil servants have no clear instructions on how to deal with this and have therefore found themselves in “a crisis of conscience”.
More reports of sexual violence
The police received more reports of sexual violence in 2024, especially in the second half of the year. There were 14,802 reports, almost 800 more than in 2023, when there were 14,015. Almost half of the reports concerned physical sexual violence, such as rape (3391) and assault (3288). Online sexual harassment was reported 63 times and street harassment 235 times. There were also 131 reports of sex chatting. In this case, an adult sends sexually suggestive messages to children. These often involved larger cases with multiple victims. In February, Statistics Netherlands (CBS) reported that women report more often than men that they have been confronted with sexually transgressive behavior . When it comes to sexual violence, the number is almost three times as high.
Number of rape or assault cases after spiking more than doubled in six years in the province of Antwerp. Spiking is the administration of drugs, medication or alcohol to a person without their knowledge. This can be done by adding it to a drink or by injection. Spiking is often used to make others more willing for sexual contact or to rob them.
The number of reports of sexual offences had already increased in 2023. The number of reports of sexual offences in 2024 increased by 16% compared to 2023, which amounts to 800 additional reports. These include rape and other forms of sexual violence, such as incest and sexual assault. In Amsterdam alone, 678 sexual offences were registered — a category that includes everything from sexting to indecent assault to prohibited pornography. There are tens of thousands of reports of sextortion within the Benelux. In 2024, the police received a total of approximately 15,000 reports of sexual offences.
Victims will soon be able to report rape and assault in more cases and can change their name free of charge. Suspects of serious crimes must be present at the substantive hearing in their criminal case. On 1 July 2024, various laws came into effect in the field of Justice and Security that determine this.
The Sexual Offences Act in summary:
- Coercion is no longer a requirement for a conviction for sexual assault or rape;
- A person is liable to punishment if the person who initiates sexual contact continues even though it is clear in some way that the other person does not want this;
- Sex chatting and sexual harassment in public will be punishable;
- The maximum penalties for a number of sexual offences are being increased;
At the beginning of 2023, various measures were announced in the National Action Programme to Combat Sexually Transgressive Behaviour and Sexual Violence , including the mandatory code of conduct. The bill that is now being submitted for internet consultation sets a number of requirements for codes of conduct. For example, employers must provide information to employees about the code of conduct. At the same time, there is still room for customisation. This means that employers themselves can determine the content of the code of conduct and the process surrounding it, within the set frameworks. At present, employers are already obliged to implement a policy to combat psychosocial work pressure. The introduction of the mandatory code of conduct partly gives substance to this. The bill makes an exception for small employers with fewer than ten employees.
The Police Combating Child Pornography and Child Sex Tourism Team is very concerned about the rapidly increasing number of people who view photos and videos of sexual abuse with minors. The ‘classic’ group of paedophiles is expanding rapidly with young people who watch for the thrill. The demand for violent images is increasing. Images of children who are forced to experience terrible things.
Girls and women in conflict areas are increasingly becoming victims of sexual abuse, child marriages and genital mutilation (circumcision). This is evident from research by Plan International, in which more than 10,000 young people from countries struggling with an armed conflict, such as Colombia, Ukraine, Lebanon and Sudan, participated. The research shows that young people between the ages of 15 and 24 indicate that girls and young women are more often sexually exploited and that existing violence against women increases during conflicts. Almost 40 percent of young people also indicate that girls in their country are married off more often than before the start of the conflict. The GGD estimates that approximately 20,000 girls and women in Amsterdam have undergone circumcision. Thousands more Amsterdam girls are also at risk of becoming victims of this ritual. The girls run the risk of all kinds of complications and mental problems.
The reporting period for assault is twelve years and for rape fifteen years. A minor has even more time to report.
Despite the fact that Moroccan law sets the minimum age of 18 as a general rule for marriage eligibility, underage marriage is still very much a topical issue in Moroccan society. Every year, some 20,000 young girls are still married off. In 2011, Morocco banned underage marriage and simultaneously reformed the Moroccan Family Code (moudawana). Underage marriage is prohibited, but the law does provide for the possibility of exemption for “special circumstances”.
In Niger, 76 percent of girls marry before they reach adulthood. Niger is at the top of the CARE blacklist, followed by Chad, the Central African Republic, South Sudan and Somalia. Most child marriages occur in South Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa and in South America and the Caribbean, but even in the Netherlands child marriages occur. Nowadays it is more standard than exceptional that cases are left unsolved and every now and then a kind of pilot group of detectives is flown in to clear a backlog, but in no time it increases again. There are simply too few specialized morals detectives. The cause is the aging of the police force and an increase in the number of cases. There are also more cases punishable now than before because of the new legislation and that leads to more reports and a larger backlog.
Abuse with deep fake nude images
In the Netherlands, it is a criminal offense to make, distribute or possess deepfake nude images of someone without permission. However, undressing apps are proving difficult to prosecute. The Netherlands is a leader in criminalizing sexual deepfakes . In many other European countries, you can at most be convicted of defamation if you make such an image of someone. In the Netherlands, making such images is a sexual offense and you can be punished much more severely for it. Making deepfake nude images carries a maximum prison sentence of two years. This concerns making images of someone who is of legal age. Distributing and possessing them is also punishable, but making the images is considered the most serious offense.
If someone makes deepfake nude images of someone under 18, the maximum prison sentence is six years – then it is seen as making virtual images of child abuse. That is punished much more severely. It also depends on the situation. If a 15-year-old boy makes a deepfake nude photo of a 15-year-old girl, that is actually seen as virtual child pornography. But because the boy is only 15, a public prosecutor will take that into account and is more likely to demand a fine, community service or a light sentence. The Halt agency can also be called in to prevent recurrence. If the 15-year-old boy uses the nude images for extortion or intimidation, a heavier sentence is demanded.
Creating sexual deepfakes without consent is punishable, but according to criminal law, the user of such a service does that, and not necessarily the app. And an undressing app can also be used, for example, if someone gives permission for such a virtual nude photo to be made, and then it is not punishable. There are situations where prosecution may be possible, for example if it can be demonstrated that they mainly make sexual deepfakes of minors. These services must also always respond to removal requests. If they do not, authorities outside of criminal law can take action against them, such as a privacy watchdog. Creating sexual deepfakes without consent is therefore punishable, especially when it concerns minors.
Abuse through sextortion and online grooming
Catherine De Bolle, Director of Europol, warns of the rise of “violent online communities” that manipulate minors with the aim of ultimately abusing them. The European police agency warns that children must be closely monitored to prevent them from being recruited by these cults. According to Europol, there are several such cults. They mainly target children and teenagers aged 8 to 17, “particularly LGBTQ+, racial minorities and minors struggling with mental health issues, such as depression and suicidal thoughts”. The cults use a tactic called ‘online grooming’. The trust of the victims is first gained, their personal information is then collected, after which they are ultimately abused.
The abused minors are said to have attacked or even killed people, including family members and sometimes random passers-by. Abusers are also said to force children to make sexual images and share the images with other members of the group. According to Europol, the online communities recruit perpetrators and victims on a global scale, and function like cults around charismatic leaders who use manipulation and deceit to lure and control their victims. The hierarchy of the communities is based on the amount of (usually extremely violent) content shared. “Today, digital platforms enable global communication, violent extremist online communities also use this possibility. Violent perpetrators spread harmful ideologies, often targeting our youth. The perpetrators use online gaming platforms, streaming services and social media platforms to identify and lure their victims.
In some cases, perpetrators infiltrate online self-help or support communities for people dealing with these issues. These violent criminals use a variety of tactics to lure and manipulate their victims into producing explicit sexual content, harming themselves, hurting others and even committing murder, Europol says. Initially, perpetrators often use ‘love bombing’ techniques – extreme displays of care, kindness and understanding to gain the trust of minors – while collecting personal information about their victims. Perpetrators use this information in the exploitation phase of grooming, when they coerce vulnerable minors into producing sexual content and committing violent acts. Perpetrators then blackmail victims into committing even more harmful acts by threatening to share the victims’ explicit content with their families, friends or online communities.
Helpline Helpwanted receives six hundred reports per month about the unwanted distribution of intimate images or about sextortion. In 2024, more than 12,000 victims reported.
The Child Pornography and Child Sex Tourism ( TBKK ) Team of the National Investigation and Intervention Unit is seeing a worrying increase in child pornography groups on end-to-end encrypted chat applications in which graphic material is shared. In addition to images of serious child sexual abuse, images of abuse and torture of children are also sent in these groups. They also find other shocking and dehumanizing images in these groups, such as beheadings of adults and gross abuse of animals. The police are also seeing an alarming increase in the number of reports of sexual offenses, with 14,802 reports in 2024, almost 800 more than in 2023. Figures on online sexual violence are lacking, because this is not registered separately. The police speak of a ‘multi-headed monster’: online sexual abuse has many different perpetrators, various criminal offenses and various victims.
Since its establishment more than twenty years ago, the National Expertise Group for Special Morals Cases ( LEBZ ) has handled more than 900 cases. Approximately 25 cases involved morals cases involving aspects of ritual abuse, of which only three in the past seven years. Based on the often extensive investigation that the police conducted in these cases before the case was submitted to the LEBZ, objective support for the accusations in the form of forensic, tactical, digital or other evidence was often lacking and/or the file contained facts that conflicted with the report. In a few cases, the LEBZ determined that further investigative measures could be taken and provided advice on this. In none of the 25 cases mentioned, prosecution was instituted by the Public Prosecution Service.
Minister Grapperhaus saw no reason to take more action. Michiel van Nispen (SP) expressed his concerns about the bias of the LEBZ. “The big question is: why is ritual abuse not being investigated? He received dozens of messages from victims and care providers who state that the biased attitude of the police and the LEBZ plays a major role in this. The interference with the standard of care makes the question of whether the LEBZ is not biased even greater.” Caleidoscoop, the national association for people with a dissociative disorder, states – in a letter that has also been signed by other organizations – that ‘independent investigations are necessary into ritual abuse in the Netherlands and the working methods of the LEBZ’. As an explanation of the letter, Caleidoscoop has collected 24 experience stories about reporting organized abuse. Grapperhaus’ home was defaced in 2022. ‘pedo Nazi’ was written in black paint on the front door and on the step to the home.
Worldwide, 1 in 5 women between the ages of 20 and 24 is married before her 18th birthday. Every year, 12 million child brides are added!
Suspects and convicts of sexual abuse
Hicham A.
Amsterdam serial rapist Hicham A. (20) from West will remain in prison for the time being. He forced girls to have sex in cinemas and station toilets. He allegedly forced young vulnerable girls to have sex, after which he ordered them to pay him money. If they did not, he would make it public that the, mostly Muslim, girls had had sex. According to the Public Prosecution Service, 20-year-old Hicham A. is guilty of rape and sexual assault of seven young women. The sexual offences are said to have been committed between 2021 and 2023 and in almost all cases took place in public spaces, such as in a cinema or in a station toilet. The seven women do not know each other and filed a complaint against A at a later date. One of the complainants was under the age of sixteen at the time of the assault.
According to the Public Prosecution Service, there is a ‘clear modus operandi’. “A clear pattern is visible. Certain elements of A.’s behaviour are reflected in the story of the complainants,” according to the public prosecutor. For example, one of the women stated that A. took her to the cinema, where the man fingered her in the toilet and penetrated her against her will. In the cinema, he forced her to give him a blow job. The woman then had to transfer 200 euros to him, otherwise he would tell those around her what had happened. Other complainants had a similar story. One woman stated how A. assaulted her at the station, after which he forced her to transfer money to him. Another woman also had to deal with an intrusive A. in the cinema. He forced her to perform sexual acts and then asked for money. A’s ex-girlfriend stated that she had had sex with A. both voluntarily and involuntarily during their relationship. The man allegedly raped his girlfriend several times. In total, the woman transferred around two thousand euros to A. The name and photo of A. were shared in the Facebook group ‘Ladies Talk’, in which women encourage each other.
Winston A.
The 26-year-old Winston A. man from Enkhuizen was only arrested after 1.5 years on suspicion of possessing and making child pornography of hundreds of boys between the ages of 10 and 16 and committing far-reaching sexual acts. The case was not dealt with earlier due to a lack of capacity at the morals police. He is also said to have physically sexually abused an underage boy. A lot of footage was found on his computer and telephone. The suspect posed as a beautiful, young woman on social media and seduced the boys to perform sexual acts in front of the camera. He made screen recordings of this.
In addition, the police found images of sexual abuse of an underage boy, committed by the suspect himself. It concerns hundreds of victims spread throughout the country. The images found were made from 2016 onwards. There are no indications that the images were distributed by the man. The police tracked down the man after two reports from victims. During the investigation, many folders with boys’ names were found on his computer. These contained the screen recordings of the sexual acts. The man had been using fake online accounts since 2016 on Snapchat, among others, which automatically deletes conversations and images.
The suspect used a different device to record the videos sent to him, pretending to be a young girl and calling himself Britt, Milou, Kate, Tess, and Suus, among others. The police have contacted some of the victims in recent days. Not all victims were recognizable in the images. The sex crime case appears to be more extensive than was previously known. The Public Prosecution Service suspects 27-year-old Winston A. not only of grooming hundreds of boys, but also of repeatedly raping a 13-year-old boy and sexually abusing two other underage boys. This became apparent during the first pro forma hearing in Alkmaar. After his arrest in September, officers found almost 500 folders with images of boys between the ages of 10 and 16 on A.’s computer. The first images date from 2016. Ten reports have now been filed. The police investigation into the man is still ongoing. Six victims have not yet been traced. The police are looking for a victim who was allegedly abused by A. in a dressing room. During the hearing, the Enkhuizer expressed remorse to his victims. He also said he was open to help. A. admitted to having often been under the influence of alcohol. That uninhibited him.
Olav A.
Sam Altman
The CEO of OpenAI, the company behind the popular chatbot ChatGPT, has been sued by his sister. Ann Altman accuses her brother Sam Altman of years of sexual abuse. The CEO has called his sister’s allegations ‘completely false’. Thirty-year-old Ann Altman claims in her lawsuit that Sam Altman (39) abused and manipulated her from the late nineties. The abuse allegedly started when she was three years old and stopped when the OpenAI CEO was an adult and she was still a minor.
His sister has previously accused him of abuse on social media. She is demanding compensation from her brother and claims that she has suffered serious emotional damage. She is also said to have increasingly high medical costs for her psychological treatment. Bloomberg News estimated Sam Altman’s personal fortune at more than $2 billion last year. The complaint was filed in the court in the American city of Saint Louis in Missouri. In that state, people can file charges of sexual abuse in their youth until they are 31 years old. Sam Altman responded to the complaint via a message on X. “This situation is causing enormous pain for our entire family,” he said, also on behalf of his mother and brothers.
Silvio Almeida
Lula da Silva has fired Silvio Almeida, the Minister for Human Rights, because he is said to have committed sexually inappropriate behavior with several women. One of the victims is a fellow minister. Minister Almeida is said to have kissed the women against their will and indecently touched them. One of them testified about an incident in 2019, in which Almeida is said to have grabbed her in the crotch under her skirt. He is also said to have bullied employees. Almeida himself denies having done anything wrong. He calls all the accusations a campaign to smear his image as a black man in a prominent position”. He says that the dismissal frees up his hands to refute the charges.
Mohamed B.
Mohamed B. (29) from Oosterhout extorted around 70 underage girls. According to the judiciary, he forced the victims to send nude photos using blackmail. The preliminary hearing in Breda was held on 5 March, where the perpetrator himself was not present. The hearing was also short and half an hour was spent discussing the status of the investigation. Since the last hearing in December, the abuse of at least four children has been added to the file. He used a video game in which he forced one of the victims, an 11-year-old girl, to masturbate and send him photos of it, and he threatened to harm the girl’s family if she refused to take photos. He promised another twelve-year-old girl digital diamonds in exchange for photos of her breasts. He did this via the game’s chat and later via Instagram and other social media.
When they did not send any more photos, B. resorted to blackmail. In addition to the online sexual abuse, Mohamed B. is also suspected of raping a 13-year-old girl. Where it initially remained at blackmail, the man went a step further in July. He arranged to meet a thirteen-year-old girl from Alblasserdam, after which he allegedly raped her. He also forced her to jerk him off. According to the Public Prosecution Service, the man continued, despite the girl telling him several times that she wanted to stop. Mohamed B. was arrested on August 27, 2024, after reporting rape. During a house search, the police found thousands of images and screenshots of chat conversations and a large amount of child pornography. 34,000 photos and videos were found on the man’s phones, laptops and hard drives. His victims were all minors and live in the Netherlands and Belgium. The police investigation is still ongoing, with victims being offered help and being given the opportunity to consider whether they want to file a complaint. The expectation is that the justice department will continue to deal with this for the coming months. In addition, nineteen victims cannot be identified. The case has not yet been dealt with in substance. Mohamed B. is currently in custody and is being examined by a psychologist and psychiatrist. According to his lawyer, he is cooperating with this. The next interim hearing is on May 27, 2025.
Christopher Behn and John Thorogood
A pedophile (72) from Nijmegen gave parents of children money in exchange for sleepovers and was involved for a long period of time in a pedophile gang whose members traveled the world to sexually abuse vulnerable children. As an amateur filmmaker, the man made images of the abuse by his accomplices for at least ten years and distributed them to other members of the network. The man from Nijmegen was sentenced to ten years in prison and TBS in Rotterdam in 2021. In addition to filming his accomplices, he had also sexually abused several boys himself in various countries, including Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Ukraine, Moldova and India. He gave children money, gifts or went on trips with them to gain their trust. He regularly ensured that the family of such a boy became financially dependent on him. He lent them money and stayed with them in return. He told the judge that the abuse would not have been harmful to the children.
Partly for this reason, he was sentenced to TBS. ‘He justifies his own behavior under the guise of cultural differences and places the responsibility for any damage to the victims with the environment of the victim’, the judge ruled in the verdict. The British NCA revealed that he played an important role in a network that also included British pedophiles. For example, two older men from England – who are already in prison for other serious offenses – were sentenced to prison terms for their involvement in the traveling network. They are Christopher Behn and John Thorogood from London. They traveled for years to various countries in Asia and Africa to gain the trust of vulnerable young boys with the ultimate goal of sexually abusing those children.
The British intelligence services, partly thanks to the Dutch police, got a hold of the network and started an investigation. They discovered that Behn had abused at least 23 times between 2008 and 2018. His travel details revealed that the man had visited Vietnam around eighteen times since 2006. He also went with the Dutchman to Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, India and Myanmar, among other places. There, the paedophiles presented themselves as a kind of father to the children, who often lived in poverty. During the investigation, the police obtained a diary in which Behn and the Dutch cameraman described very graphic and shocking details of the abuse. The NCA later also intercepted secret conversations that the Briton had with other perpetrators via encrypted e-mails. In these, the paedophiles discussed the children they had met and abused, the payments to the victims and their families and possible scenarios that could have exposed them to the police. Behn, 68, was sentenced to 11 years in prison by a British judge on Friday for sexually abusing young boys in Vietnam over a period of 10 years.
He was arrested by the NCA earlier in 2020 and was already serving a nine-year prison sentence after being found guilty of abusing 11 children during a trip to Myanmar in 2016. Alongside Behn, John Thorogood, a sex offender who has previous convictions for possession of child pornography, was also arrested. Thorogood, now 78, is believed to have sexually abused young boys in Morocco in 2012. Forensic investigators searched his phone and computer and found more than 200,000 photos and videos of young children, some of which were taken by Thorogood and showed babies aged around one year old. Thorogood was found guilty of a total of seven serious offences, including indecent assault on a 15-year-old boy and a boy aged between 10 and 12. The NCA has also identified four other alleged paedophiles based in the UK who are believed to have links to the network. It is not clear whether they have been arrested. Investigations are ongoing in other countries in Europe.
Tim den Besten
Presenter Tim den Besten used fake profiles to have sexually suggestive conversations. His case was dropped by the Public Prosecution Service after his confession and a conversation with his victims. Den Besten created fake profiles with personal photos of three men on gay dating app Grindr and Instagram and used them to have sexually suggestive conversations. In a statement, the presenter said he deeply regrets using photos and details of other men. “I hurt and saddened people by doing so. I am deeply ashamed.” When the case came to light in late 2023 after reporting by Het Parool, broadcaster KRO-NCRV cancelled an episode of the family game show Waku Waku , in which Den Besten was a candidate. The public broadcaster said at the time that identity fraud in youth programs is a topic “that we regularly warn children about and report on”.
Marius Borg Høiby
The son of the Norwegian Crown Princess Mette-Marit (28) committed abuse in the basement of the royal residence. In recent years, Marius regularly organized so-called ‘Skaugum festivals’ in the residence of the Norwegian Crown Prince couple, where he and his friends partied. During these gatherings, things got out of hand several times. Marius and his friends are said to have stolen valuable objects, including a crown of great emotional value to the royal family, which was later sold via auction houses. This was not the first time that things went wrong during the ‘Skaugum festivals’. In an exclusive video, seen by ‘Se og Hør’, Marius can be seen tearing across the domain at a speed of 91 kilometers per hour, while the speed limit there is 50 kilometers per hour. He eventually crashes his car into the fence of the grounds. These events follow the controversy in August, when Marius was arrested after allegations of assaulting a twenty-something in an Oslo apartment. He was held for 30 hours and charged. Marius later admitted in a statement that he had been under the influence of alcohol and cocaine during the incident. In November 2024, Marius Borg Høiby, the son of Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway, was arrested on suspicion of rape, assault and threats, among other things. Mette-Marit is said to be closely involved in the case. When a hunting lodge in Skeikampen, where Marius was staying with three other men, was raided in September, the princess was said to have been informed immediately. Both weapons and drugs were said to have been found during the raid. Marius was then said to have been taken away. At that moment, according to the magazine, Mette-Marit was called on her private number by one of the people present in the lodge, who was said to be a known criminal. The man is said to have given her all the details and informed her of the arrest. It is striking that such a criminal has the private number of a member of the royal family. In any case, it is not the first time that Mette-Marit has been in the news for the way she has handled the case. For example, the Norwegian newspaper ‘VG’ claimed in November that the Crown Princess had been informed in advance about his arrest on 4 August and had taken advantage of this to clean up his apartment before the police arrived. She should have let the police do their job, both for Marius himself and to protect the monarchy. According to the Norwegian newspaper Se og Hør, there is new evidence against Marius Borg Høiby. The son of Crown Princess Mette-Marit (51) is suspected of rape and domestic violence. And this allegedly took place in the home of Mette-Marit and her husband Haakon (51). TV star Linni Meister (39) is also said to have been a victim of Marius. The woman only discovered this herself at the police station, where she had been invited to talk about her ‘good friend’.At the station, Meister was shown dozens of photos, including three videos from 2018. The images show four young people playing a game in Skaugum, the official residence of Haakon and Mette-Marit. The atmosphere seems good. But images from later in the evening show the abuse of Meister in the basement of the house. It is said to involve ‘serious acts’. A great shock for the TV presenter, who had always considered Marius a good friend and had no memory of the abuse. She remembered the evening as a ‘nice get-together with friends’. Incidentally, the abuse was not the only criminal act that took place in Skaugum. Marius’ friends are also said to have stolen things from the house. The fact that the abuse took place in Skaugum is remarkable. “There are not many places in Norway where you should feel as safe as there. The building has a very high level of security”. For example, there are always guards and bodyguards present. The fact that the attack took place in their own home must have been extremely difficult for the family. The living room in the basement was probably a natural meeting place for the family and a place where the children could talk to their friends. Since he finished his stay in a rehab clinic in London in mid-January, it remained quiet until it turned out that he was staying in a luxury resort in Norway, together with his stepfather Haakon (51). The two are said to have stayed at the ‘Malangen Resort’ near Tromsø, more than 1,700 kilometers from the capital Oslo. His sister, Princess Ingrid Alexandra (21), is also said to have visited him there. On January 12, Marius Borg Høiby returned from London, where he had been treated for his alcohol and drug addiction. He is accused of rape and domestic violence by several women. The Crown Prince and his stepson are said to be on holiday together to keep Marius away from all temptations and to prevent him from relapsing. Princess Ingrid Alexandra is also said to have visited them at the resort. The princess is doing her military service in Camp Skjold, about an hour’s drive from Malangen. The three were seen taking a dive from the jetty. At the end of March, a new 5th report of sexual abuse in a hotel was received during the investigation. Marius is also said to have filmed it on his phone. Marius Borg Høiby is suspected of 23 crimes in total, including three rapes. After ten months, the police investigation into the son of the Norwegian Crown Princess Mette-Marit has been completed. In addition to the three rapes, Høiby is suspected of abuse and threats. He is also said to have assaulted a police officer and committed several traffic violations. The police are keeping the number of Høiby’s victims in the middle, but confirm that there are at least ten. The police have forwarded the case to the Public Prosecution Service in Oslo.That will determine whether Høiby will be prosecuted. The 28-year-old Høiby, born from a relationship before Mette-Marit’s marriage to Crown Prince Haakon, was arrested in August on suspicion of assaulting his girlfriend. Since then, more and more accusations have been made. Because Høiby is Haakon’s stepson, he does not have a royal title.
Marco Borsato
In December 2021, Borsato, through Knoops’ lawyers, requested the Public Prosecution Service to investigate the source of persistent insinuations on the internet against him since 2020 about inappropriate sexual behavior with underage girls. He denied the allegations. A few days later, a 22-year-old woman filed a complaint against Borsato through lawyer Peter Plasman. According to the indictment, he allegedly groped her indecently between 2014 and 2019 and, among other things, put his hand under her skirt and caressed her between her legs. Borsato denied it again and in turn filed a complaint against her for filing a false report and filing a defamatory charge. At the same time, he filed a complaint against the woman’s mother for complicity and incitement. The case concerns a girl he met through her mother, who was friends with him and played a role in his fan club. She filed a complaint in 2021. Borsato is said to have been a kind of family friend, especially since the death of the father of the alleged victim. A position that he seriously abused, according to the accusations. A report was filed 28 months ago, but this case continues. The lawyer couple Knoops have passed on investigation requests and wanted to hear 29 witnesses. Shortly after the report, he withdrew as ambassador of War Child, according to him to focus on his defense and not to burden War Child with this matter. In September 2023, the Public Prosecution Service summoned Borsato for indecent acts with a minor. In the broadcast BOOS: This is The Voice of the YouTube series BOOS, other alleged sexually transgressive behavior by Borsato was discussed. Following this broadcast, Madame Tussauds Amsterdam removed the wax figure of Borsato on January 21, 2022. The radio stations NPO Radio 1, NPO Radio 2, NPO 3FM, Qmusic, 100% NL and Talpa decided to stop playing Borsato’s music shortly after the broadcast. These stations also decided to await the outcome of further investigation. In March 2023, it was announced that Borsato would not be prosecuted in connection with The Voice of Holland due to a lack of evidence in which Borsato was again accused of groping participants and employees. While the police file was already with the Public Prosecution Service in the summer of 2022, the case was repeatedly delayed. For example, one of the investigations concerned certain diary entries of the alleged victim. All investigations now appear to have been completed and Marco Borsato (58) will be present at the trial that will start against him at the end of October. The singer, who is suspected of indecent acts with an underage girl, will make extensive statements there, his lawyers Geert-Jan Knoops and Carry Knoops-Hamburger confirmed to RTL Boulevard. The substantive hearings of the case are scheduled for October 28 and 30 in the Utrecht court.
Ali Bouali
Singer and producer Ali Boualimust serve two years in prison for a rape in 2018 and an attempted rape in 2014. Ali B was on trial for four sexual offences against three women: two sexual assaults and two rapes. He was acquitted of a sexual assault in Heiloo in 2018 and a sexual assault in Amsterdam in the same year. The judge called Ali B “a fairly forceful person who does not accept no, shows little empathy for others and assumes his own view of things”. In the rape and attempted rape, his “own sexual needs were leading”, the judge stated. According to her, B did not consider the psychological consequences for the women. The sentence was lower than the demand of the Public Prosecution Service, which had requested an unconditional prison sentence of three years last month. Lawyer Swier had requested acquittal in all cases. Ali B “does indeed accept no”, he stated in his plea. There was a report of a rape in Morocco in 2014 against singer Ellen ten Damme. In addition, there was a report by a woman named Naomi of sexual assault and rape at a writers’ camp in Heiloo in 2018. Jill Helena (stage name), former candidate of The Voice of Holland, had reported a sexual assault in 2018 in a car in the Amsterdamse Bos. The statements of all the women are reliable, the judge ruled. But for the alleged sexual assaults in Heiloo and Amsterdam, there was insufficient supporting evidence, which is necessary for a conviction. In addition, according to the judge, it is not certain that Ten Damme was actually raped, because she had once stated that Ali B had penetrated her, and later retracted this. The judge did find attempted rape proven. The Public Prosecution Service is appealing against all three acquittals. After studying the verdict, the Public Prosecution Service saw points of contact to resubmit the case in appeal, the preliminary hearing of which was scheduled for April 17, 2025. Among other things, the investigation requests and requests of the defense and prosecutor were submitted. Ali B himself was not present and was represented by his lawyer Bart Swier, who stated that the Public Prosecution Service, possibly because of Tim Hofman’s BOOS broadcast, has created a “malicious frame” of his client. Bouali and his wife are also said to have never wanted to influence witnesses. Swier also wants to hear new witnesses, including Ali’s ex-wife and Ronnie Flex, the man who was present at the writing camp and who was in the shower with Naomi M. when Ali B entered the room. The girl was orally satisfying Flex when Ali B stuck his fingers inside her without asking, according to the Public Prosecution Service. Ali B was also convicted of this rape last July. Swier wants to hear Ronnie Flex as a witness, because in his view the evidence is “pieced together”. Flex’ statements are also said to have been written down incorrectly by the police,but were used by the court to convict Ali B of rape. The conviction for the attempted rape of Ellen ten Damme is also flawed on all sides, Swier believes. He wants the statement of a witness who was in the same house at the time of the alleged crime to be transcribed verbatim. Word for word. Ali B’s lawyer also wants to submit the audio recordings of the witness statements to an expert. One victim was present in court and also made use of her right to speak. That was Jill Helena. But neither Ellen ten Damme nor Naomi were there. Ten Damme would have preferred not to have been involved at all. The unknown witnesses that Swier wanted to hear were rejected by the court. Bouali’s wife Bregje Kommers will not be heard as a witness. Ronnie Flex and the woman who heard from Ellen ten Damme’s then manager/boyfriend that “something had happened” have been assigned as witnesses.
Jacques Bouthier
The now dismissed CEO of Assu2000 (Vilavi), Jacques Bouthier has been arrested and charged with the sexual exploitation of minors, including a Moroccan teenager. The case, which also involves an attempt to conceal evidence, has led to Bouthier’s dismissal as CEO. The case came to light following a complaint by a Moroccan girl, Kenza (alias), who claims that she was provided to Bouthier by her cousin when she was 16. According to Kenza, her sexual encounters with Bouthier began in 2016. Her cousin received 200 euros after each encounter. In the summer of 2017, Bouthier allegedly decided to pay Kenza directly and give her an apartment in the Paris region. After she came of age, he allegedly forced her to visit sex clubs and have sex with various men, asking her for 100 euros. Kenza claims that she was Bouthier’s sexual slave for years and that he eventually left her in 2022. Wanting revenge, Kenza filmed a meeting between Bouthier and a 14-year-old girl. She used the video to blackmail him. When he did not respond to her threats, she decided to file a complaint. Bouthier was wiretapped, which led to his arrest on May 17. Pedopornographic material was found during a house search. Bouthier initially denied the allegations but later admitted to having sex with the victims and trying to cover up the case. Bouthier was charged in late May with, among other things, rape and sexual abuse of minors, human trafficking and using an underage prostitute. The investigation is ongoing. Assu2000 is a major insurance company in France.
Jos Brech
Nicky Verstappen (13 March 1987) from the Limburg village of Heibloem disappeared on 10 August 1998 when he was at a camp with a group of fellow villagers organised by the local youth work at De Heikop, a recreation area on the Brunssummerheide. The evening before his disappearance, the activities ended at 22:00, after which the children went to their tents. The next morning around 05:00, he was seen in the tent where Nicky was sleeping by a tent mate. Three hours later, he appeared to have disappeared from the camp site. The managers first went looking for Nicky themselves and when they could not find him, they called the police. The police initially took no action. The managers distributed posters in the area and in the evening people from Heibloem came to help with the search. However, the boy was not found. The next day, a large-scale search operation was started with the help of the police, the military police, soldiers, an aircraft and a sniffer dog. On August 11, 1998 at around 9:00 p.m., Nicky’s body was found near a Christmas tree plot, about 1,200 meters from the camp site. An autopsy was performed three days after the body was found. Due to vacation, no pathologist was available earlier. The time of death could therefore not be determined. The cause of death could also not be determined with 100% certainty. Over the years, the justice department had several suspects in mind. In 2002, a drug addict from Tegelen was arrested. He was a brother of one of the camp leaders. The investigation into him yielded nothing, however, and he was released a few weeks later. In Germany and France, several well-known child murderers, such as the Frenchman Michel Fourniret, were questioned about their involvement in the death of Nicky Verstappen. Here too, however, no link was found. On January 9, 2007, a 36-year-old man was arrested in Landgraaf. He appeared to have written letters that had been found on Verstappen’s grave the previous year and a half. In them, the writer suggested that he knew more about the case. After a few weeks he was released again because it turned out he had nothing to do with the case.On December 25, 2007, he was arrested again after the monument was vandalized and another letter was found.On April 13, 2008, it was discovered that the monument had been vandalized again. On April 5, 2019, he vandalized the memorial stone for a third time. Peter R. de Vries investigated the case on behalf of the family of Nicky Verstappen. He focused his investigation on the camp leaders. One of the camp leaders had previously been convicted of indecent acts with minors. The very old man died in 2003. In 2010, his body was exhumed to compare his DNA with traces found on Nicky’s body. His DNA did not match the DNA trace found. Twenty years after the death of Nicky Verstappen, the statute of limitations for prosecution may expire. According to the judiciary, the statute of limitations was interrupted because the court carried out an investigative act before the expiry of the limitation period. In January 2018, the police announced that they would be conducting a large-scale DNA kinship investigation. For this purpose, 21,500 men were called who lived – or lived in 1998 – in the area where Nicky Verstappen’s body was found. Initially, men from Landgraaf, Heerlen and Brunssum were called. Then men who lived around the heath in 1998 and had moved were called. On 22 August 2018, the Dutch Public Prosecution Service announced that there was a DNA match with 55-year-old Jos Brech who lived in Simpelveld at the time of the incident. It is said to be a bushcrafter, an avid wild camper who masters techniques to survive in nature. The day after Nicky’s murder, he was already approached by the police as a ‘passer-by’ near the place where the victim’s remains were found. Later in the investigation, he was heard twice more as a witness, but was not considered a suspect. It involved a completematch with traces on the dead boy’s clothing. At that time, it was not known where Jos Brech was staying. He had left in February 2018 to go hiking in the Vosges, after which he was last seen in February in Sainte-Marie-aux-Mines.He was reported missing by his family in April 2018. Because he was reported missing, his DNA could be obtained from his belongings. A European Arrest Warrant was issued for Brech and he was also placed on the National Wanted List. Brech was arrested on 26 August 2018 in the town of Castellterçol near Barcelona in Spain, after a tip from a Dutch tourist who recognised him from photos that had been circulated in the media. The suspect agreed to extradition to the Netherlands, which meant that this could take place on 6 September. On 9 September, the public prosecutor filed a request for “prisoner detention” with the court. The examining magistrate of the Limburg court granted this request the same day. The preliminary pro forma hearings in the criminal case against Brech took place in the spring of 2020. These were hampered by the measures in connection with the corona crisis . The substantive hearing of the charges against him was postponed and took place in the period from September 28 to October 16, 2020. On the first day of the trial on September 28, 2020, the suspect denied all charges. His explanation was that he had found the body during a night bike ride after which he found that the boy was dead. He left and did not report it. On the second day of the trial, the suspect did not answer the question why his DNA was mainly found in the victim’s underwear. On October 5, the Public Prosecution Service questioned his statement by means of a photo taken on the night of August 11, 1998, the day Nicky was found. This photo, which shows the place where Nicky was found, shows that, from the place where Brech claims to have seen something, it is impossible that he could have seen the boy. On October 8, a 15-year prison sentence and TBS were demanded for abusing and killing Nicky.The Public Prosecution Service argued why no one other than the suspect could be responsible for the boy’s death. Brech was found guilty by the court on November 20 of deprivation of liberty and sexual abuse resulting in death. He was sentenced to 12 years and 6 months in prison. Possession of child pornography was also proven. The verdict was broadcast live. On the day of the verdict, his lawyer Gerald Roethof announced that he would appeal. On January 28, 2022, the court of appeal in Den Bosch did not consider the legally more serious ‘qualified manslaughter’ and rape proven, but Brech was found guilty of kidnapping, indecent assault and manslaughter of Nicky, in addition to possession of child pornography. He was sentenced to 16 years in prison. His lawyer announced that he would appeal the verdict.On September 26, 2023, the Supreme Court ruled that the conviction would stand After the criminal case into the death of Nicky Verstappen was completed, all DNA material obtained was collected by the NFI. A transport company designated by the government then collected it and took it to a certified destruction company. There, all DNA material was burned and provided with a destruction certificate. The NFI also destroyed all printed DNA profiles and deleted all digital files. At the start of the large-scale DNA research, all participants were informed that they would be informed when the DNA material had been destroyed. The 2,200 participants who opted for immediate DNA destruction received a letter about this at the time. The other participants will receive a letter from the Public Prosecution Service this week about the DNA destruction in which they are also thanked for voluntarily donating their DNA. Cooperating in such an investigation can be of great value to the police and the Public Prosecution Service for the criminal investigation and in particular in the search for the perpetrator. The research material from the large-scale DNA research in the case of Nicky Verstappen was destroyed at the beginning of February by order of the Public Prosecution Service (OM). This concerns DNA and the DNA profiles drawn from it of men who voluntarily provided DNA in 2017/2018 and gave permission to keep the material until the criminal case was concluded.
Christian Brückner
The main suspect in the disappearance of Madeleine McCann has been acquitted by a German court in a number of other abuse cases. Christian Brückner was on trial for three counts of rape and two counts of child sexual abuse. The presiding judge ruled that there was insufficient evidence to prove Brückner guilty in these cases. Prosecutors are appealing the verdict. The cases Brückner was on trial for took place in Portugal between 2000 and 2017. Prosecutors had demanded a 15-year prison sentence for Brückner. His lawyer asked for his acquittal, saying that Brückner was only being prosecuted because he was in the picture in the Madeleine case. German authorities believe that Brückner is responsible for the death of Madeleine from Great Britain. The girl disappeared in 2007 at the age of three from the apartment where her parents were on holiday in Praia da Luz, Portugal. It is still unclear what happened to her. Brücker denies having anything to do with the case. Although Brückner was acquitted on Tuesday, he will remain in prison until at least September for an earlier conviction. He was sentenced to seven years in prison for the rape of a 72-year-old woman in Praia da Luz in 2005.
Arne Bye
Shawn Carter (rapper Jay-Z)
Rapper and music mogul Jay-Z, Beyoncé’s eighth-grader, has been accused in a civil lawsuit of raping a 13-year-old girl, along with Sean “Diddy” Combs. The incident allegedly occurred 24 years ago. The plaintiff, who wishes to remain anonymous and has been given the alias “Jane Doe,” allegedly attempted to gain entry to the MTV Video Awards or an afterparty without a ticket. She approached several limo drivers who were parked outside the building where the event was taking place. One of the drivers, the lawsuit alleges, told her he worked for Combs and that she “fit the bill for Diddy.” He invited her to a party after the awards show and told her to return to his car later that evening, after he had driven Carter and Combs to the party. The driver later picked her up and after a 20-minute drive, they arrived at a white house with a U-shaped driveway. She says she was asked to sign a nondisclosure agreement upon arrival to enter the party, which was filled with celebrities and involved a variety of drugs. The plaintiff says she was then offered a drink, which made her “feel dizzy and lightheaded and felt like I needed to lie down.” The woman says she then went to a room to rest, when Combs and Carter entered and Combs allegedly yelled, “You’re ready to party!” She says Carter then took off her clothes, held her down and raped her while Combs and a female celebrity, whose name has not been released, watched. She says Combs also raped her while Carter and the woman watched. After the attack, the lawsuit says, she grabbed her clothes and left. She walked to a gas station, where she called her father. She is seeking unspecified damages. Attorney Tony Buzbee, who filed the lawsuit, also accuses Sean “Diddy” Combs of sexual assault and rape. This is the first lawsuit in which he names another celebrity. The rape lawsuit was originally filed against Combs in October. The lawsuit was refiled to include Shawn Carter in the indictment. A third request for bail was recently filed denied again. A judge in New York ruled that he is too great a danger to society. Two other judges previously reached the same conclusion. The statement of the now 38-year-old woman seems to be shaky on all sides and is said to be unbelievable. The woman’s father also denies that he would have taken the woman in at the time. She now admits to having told untruths but that the facts did indeed happen and withdrew the complaint, after which JAY-Z started a lawsuit against the woman for defamation. According to the rapper’s legal team, the complaint, which was filed by attorneys Tony Buzbee and David Fortney, was “malicious” and “intended to inflict maximum pain and suffering” on JAY-Z. JAY-Z’s team claims that the woman hired Buzbee “to make money” and that Buzbee encouraged her “to continue”, despite the fact that her story would not be true. The woman previously acknowledged that there are errors in her story. JAY-Z does not want to reveal the woman’s identity, but does hold her responsible for defamation and “malicious prosecution based on knowingly false allegations.” His lawyers filed their lawsuit in the American state of Alabama. Earlier, JAY-Z’s lawyers in Los Angeles filed a lawsuit against Buzbee for defamation. The rapper’s team stated at the time that everyone “who has ever come into contact” with Diddy is being intimidated. Buzbee represents about 120 people who accuse Diddy of sexual misconduct.
Sean Combs/Rapper Diddy
Sean Combs (Rapper Diddy 55) was arrested on September 17, 2024. Singer Dawn Richard accuses the rapper of sexual abuse and assault . Dawn was a member of the girl group Danity Kane, which Diddy put together in the MTV program Making The Band (2004). In recent times, several women have accused him of inappropriate behavior. In October, attorney Buzbee called on possible victims of Diddy to come forward. Since then, he has received ‘about three thousand’ calls.
A new civil lawsuit has been filed in Los Angeles against Sean “Diddy” Combs, alleging sexual misconduct by former model and actor Edmond Laurent. The actor, who appeared in music videos for Britney Spears and Lil’ Kim, claims that he was raped by a woman while under the influence of drugs in the presence of Combs. Laurent is seeking $10 million in damages for, among other things, “assault, sexual battery, intentional assault, infliction of emotional distress and negligence.” The allegations date back to the late 2000s and are said to have taken place at luxury hotels in Beverly Hills. The woman is said to have intentionally damaged the condom with her nails, exposing the alleged victim to a sexually transmitted disease. Laurent claims that he has suffered serious health problems, including stomach cancer, as a result of the alleged abuse.
Sean allegedly behaved aggressively towards all the participants during the recordings, but according to the singer, he especially targeted her. She says that he made her rehearse for 48 hours straight, which caused her to become dehydrated and exhausted. Later, he also allegedly assaulted her. Diddy also allegedly locked her in a car for two hours.
Not long before that, it had already become known that Diddy had reached a settlement with his ex Cassie, after she had accused him of rape. Recently, a video appeared online in which he can be seen abusing Cassie in the hallway of a hotel. After the video became world news, Diddy apologized. In July, the rapper was also charged with human trafficking. A woman claims that Diddy forced her to use drugs and have sex with guests at his parties. In March, his homes in Los Angeles and Miami were already searched because of his involvement in human trafficking for sex. An indictment by a so-called grand jury in New York is said to be the reason for the arrest.
Diddy’s legal team said he would cooperate with the investigation and voluntarily relocated to New York to await the charges. Combs is accused of sexual assault by another 120 alleged victims, according to attorney Tony Buzbee, who will represent the alleged victims. Half of the victims are female and half are male. 25 of them were minors at the time of the abuse. One of the alleged victims was allegedly abused at the age of 9.
It would be the first time that Combs has been charged with sexual abuse of minors. The oldest allegations date back to the early 1990s – when Diddy broke through – but according to The Washington Post, the vast majority of incidents occurred after the turn of the century. In many cases, it would involve rape at the sex parties that Combs organized. The lawyer says that a case will be filed individually for each victim. The victims were repeatedly drugged and then sexually abused. Sean has 120 complaints of sexual abuse of both men and women. 25 victims were reportedly minors at the time. Prosecutors in the case against Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs decided to drop a number of charges. These include attempted kidnapping and attempted arson.
The artist denies all allegations. He had to appear in court for the first time on Wednesday, October 9, 2024. According to Tony Buzbee, the lawyer who represents dozens of victims in the abuse case involving Sean, famous friends of the artist have settled with victims. Buzbee stated this in an interview with the American entertainment site TMZ . Buzbee claimed that there are plans to sue several celebrities who are said to have helped Diddy cover up sexual abuse that took place at his parties. A few big names have already settled with victims. Diddy’s legal team made a third attempt to have him released on bail on October 9, 2024, but the judge did not agree. Until the hearing, Diddy will remain behind bars at the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) in New York City, which is notorious for its poor living conditions, staff shortages, violence among prisoners and power outages.
The conditions in the prison are so bad that some judges refuse to send certain inmates to the detention center. A judge describes the conditions as ‘dangerous’ and ‘barbaric’ At least six people filed new lawsuits in New York on October 14 by both men and women who say they were raped by the rapper. Diddy also allegedly assaulted a 16-year-old boy. The charges were filed anonymously by two women and four men. One of the men claims that Diddy pulled down the 16-year-old boy’s pants during a party in the Hamptons in 1998. According to the complaint, Combs then groped his genitals. The rapper claimed he did this as part of a hazing ritual that was part of the music industry. One of the women claims that Combs raped her in a hotel room in 2004. According to the complaint, Diddy allegedly forced her to perform oral sex on him and a friend. He allegedly threatened to kill her if she did not comply with his sexual requests. The substantive hearing of the ongoing case against Combs will take place in early May 2025. Combs’ legal team is accusing the US government of defamation.
Janice Combs, his mother, has expressed her deep sorrow over the accusations against her son in a statement. According to Janice, the rapper is already being publicly condemned before he has had a chance to prove his innocence. She therefore hopes that he will receive a fair trial and that the judge will find in his favor. She visited him together with his two teenage daughters D’Lila and Jessie in the prison in Brooklyn. New charges of sexual abuse have recently been filed. It concerns the abuse of a 10-year-old boy in 2005 and the sexual abuse of a 17-year-old boy in 2008. In a new complaint, a man claims that Vombs abused him, drugged him and forced him to perform sexual acts with women for five years. In addition, the artist is being sued by two women. The man, who filed an anonymous complaint, states that Combs had promised him a music career. In addition, the rapper allegedly threatened him with death and blackmailed him with secretly recorded sexual encounters. Two women also sued Combs on Tuesday. Both allege they were drugged and forced to perform sexual acts with people close to Combs in the 1990s. Combs has filed a $100 million defamation lawsuit against NBC and streaming service Peacock over the documentary Diddy: The Making of a Bad Boy. Five new federal charges were recently filed, including the abuse of two boys, ages 10 and 17. Diddy is accused of human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation, extortion and transportation of people for the purpose of prostitution, according to court documents. His trial in federal court in New York is scheduled to begin May 5.
He has been in jail awaiting trial since September. Dozens of people have also accused Combs of sexual misconduct. Prosecutors say Diddy used his music empire to fuel a violent system of human trafficking for sexual exploitation and extortion. The case began on May 12 with opening arguments from prosecutors and his attorneys. The 55-year-old rapper is represented by Marc Agnifilo, Teny Geragos and Brian Steel.
Diddy was arrested in September 2024 and has been in custody in New York ever since. Four people are involved in the case. Three alleged victims want to remain anonymous. Diddy allegedly forced them to participate in sex parties, which are called ‘freak-offs’. The fourth person at the center of the case is singer Cassie Ventura, with whom Diddy had a relationship between 2007 and 2018. Agnifilo heads Diddy’s legal team. He is an experienced criminal defense attorney from New York and has been involved in a number of high-profile cases. For example, he represents Luigi Mangione, the 27-year-old American who is charged with the murder of insurance executive Brian Thompson. He also served as counsel to self-help guru Keith Raniere, the leader of a sex cult. Raniere was accused of sexual exploitation and extortion and was sentenced to 120 years in prison in 2020. Teny Geragos is the second attorney representing Diddy. She has extensive experience defending and investigating allegations of sexual misconduct. Geragos recently brought Diddy’s case to attention on TikTok. “He’s fighting. He’s innocent and he’s going to be able to show that,” she said.
Brian Steel has recently joined Diddy’s legal team. Diddy is not the first rapper to be assisted by Steel. Steel previously served as Young Thug’s attorney. The rapper was arrested in May 2022 along with 27 others. They were charged with murder, assault, car theft and drug trafficking, among other things. Young Thug was facing a prison sentence of 45 years. With Steel at his side, the rapper was acquitted after a trial that lasted for years. The trial also had a heavy impact on Steel. The lawyer had to spend twenty days in jail after accusing the judge and prosecutors of an inappropriate private conversation with a key witness. In the meantime, Diddy continues to vehemently deny the accusations. According to his lawyers, the rapper is not a criminal. He is said to have had the “lifestyle” of a “swinger”. Someone for whom multiple sexual partners, including sex workers, were “appropriate”.
Jane felt “obligated” to have sex with others because Diddy paid $10,000 in rent for her Los Angeles apartment. The musician allegedly used the apartment as leverage to force her to participate in sex nights. The ex-girlfriend told the court that the relationship with Diddy, which ended when he was arrested in September, also had positive aspects. She cherished the moments when they cuddled and watched TV shows together. “He was my baby,” she said. The love she felt for the musician also allegedly motivated her to respond to Diddy’s sexual needs.
An assistant, who went by the pseudonym Mia, began working for Combs in 2009. She was in her 20s at the time. She found herself in what she described as a “chaotic” and “toxic” work environment in which Combs called the shots and put his own needs above the well-being of his staff and loved ones. She said she feared Combs’ violent rages, which flared up quickly. As a personal assistant, she was often the first to experience his aggression. For example, he threw a plate of spaghetti at her head, narrowly missing her. Something similar happened when she told him the Wi-Fi wasn’t working.
Diddy allegedly raped and abused her, she herself told the court. The word ‘no’ was not allowed at all. Whether he asked for a sandwich or something else. In addition, she always had to stay within “his field of vision” and respond to all his “needs, whims and moods”. There was also systematic physical and sexual violence, but she did not dare to report him. A former assistant to rap mogul Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs said this yesterday in court in New York.
Mia also alleged sexual violence. Combs allegedly sexually assaulted her multiple times while she was working for him, including during her first year at his 40th birthday party. He put his hand under her dress and forcibly kissed her. Another time, he forced her to perform oral sex on her while she was helping him pack for a trip. She also recounted a time when she was sleeping at Combs’s Los Angeles home and woke up to the “weight of Combs” on top of her as he began raping her. “I froze,” she said. “It happened so fast, but it felt like an eternity.” The abuse was unpredictable, she said: “Always random, sporadic, so strangely spaced out that I thought it wouldn’t happen again.”
Mia is the second witness in Combs’ trial to allege that Combs sexually abused her, following the same fate his ex-girlfriend, Casandra, or Cassie Ventura, had previously committed. Ventura told the court that Combs subjected her to hundreds of “freak-offs,” drug marathons in which she said she was forced to perform sexual acts on male sex workers while Combs watched, filmed and coached.
Mia also corroborated Ventura’s stories of physical violence in their relationship. When Mia and the couple went on vacation to the Turks and Caicos Islands, they also had multiple violent outbursts. She said Ventura would run into her room late at night and scream that Combs was “going to kill her.” They fled and hid together on the beach, she said.
That same vacation, Mia and Ventura took to the water on paddleboards to escape an angry Combs, who was pacing back and forth on the beach. When the weather began to turn bad in the area that is prone to tropical storms, Mia wondered if “it would be scarier to face Mother Nature or go back to Puff,” one of Combs’ nicknames. Despite witnessing Ventura being abused by Combs, Mia didn’t go to the police. She believed “his authority was above the police.” She had a similar explanation for the sexual abuse she had suffered. She was afraid of what he would do if she said “no” or went to the police.
“I knew his power,” she said. “I knew he had me in his power and I didn’t want to lose everything I had worked so hard for.” She said another assistant was fired for reporting Combs’ assault on Ventura. When prosecutors asked her why she was telling her story in court now, she replied, “I had to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.” Mia is back on the stand today. Combs’ defense was scheduled to question her, but didn’t. On June 24, the seven-week testimony ended. Combs declined to testify himself. When asked by the judge if Combs had discussed his decision with his attorneys, the entertainer replied, “Yes, thoroughly.” When the judge asked again if it was his own decision not to testify, Combs said, “That’s my decision, Your Honor. That’s my decision alone. I mean, it’s my decision, along with my attorneys.”
In recent weeks, prosecutors have heard from dozens of witnesses in the case. Among them was Cassie Ventura, who had been in a relationship with the rapper and producer for about 11 years. Former employees of Diddy and police officers involved in the investigation also testified.
The charges the jury agreed on include sex trafficking and transportation of persons for the purpose of prostitution, involving Diddy’s ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura and a woman who testified at the trial under the name “Jane.”
The final charge is participation in a criminal organization. That carries the most severe sentence. Despite all the testimony, Diddy was only found partially guilty. The jury found him guilty only of transporting persons for the purpose of prostitution. The jury found him not guilty of the other three charges. The jury reached a verdict on four charges on Tuesday, but did not agree on the fifth and final charge. Sean “Diddy” Combs remains in custody awaiting sentencing. A request for bail was denied on July 2, just hours after he was found guilty of transporting persons for the purpose of prostitution. He has been in a New York jail since September 2024.
Gerard Depardieu
French actor Gérard Depardieu is on trial for sexual assault and rape. The accusations are piling up against the actor who worked his way into the film world with a big mouth. Gérard Depardieu’s grandmother was a toilet attendant. She cleaned the toilets at Orly airport, south of Paris, every day. Young Gérard often stayed with her in the summer and was allowed to go to work with her. He loved that as a child. Addis-Abeba, Buenos Aires, Saigon: the most exotic destinations were announced. “In my mind I travelled all over the world. I stood there with my grandmother in the shithouse of the airport and said to myself: one day I will make those trips myself,” Depardieu writes in his autobiography. There were also plenty of reasons to daydream. The toilets at Orly were a lot cozier than his parental home in Châteauroux in central France. Gérard’s father was illiterate and a drunk. His mother told Gérard that he was an unwanted child. His parents could not pay for his schooling. There was no money for clothes; they were collected for free from the church or aid organizations. Gérard, his two brothers and his three sisters all went their own way. “We never ate together at the table. No one said hello to each other. My father often came home drunk and vomiting and then there was hitting and shouting.” As a teenager, Gérard preferred to close the door behind him and live on the streets. He was guilty of theft and set up illegal businesses. “The only person you can trust is yourself. I was a street dog.” At the age of 16, he was sentenced to three weeks in prison for car theft. “Gérard Depardieu is someone who had no education and hardly went to school. As a result, he was not taught any social codes as a child, about how you should and should not behave,” says writer Lionel Duroy, who helped Depardieu with his autobiography. “I visited him at home in Paris for two months for the book. And he often opened the door in his underpants. Just because he was hot. We sat next to each other to talk and then he just stayed in his underpants the whole time. That’s the way he is. He didn’t get any manners from home. What other people think of him doesn’t interest him.’ Another thing that played a role in Depardieu’s youth: a pubescent sexual fascination with women. In his autobiography he describes for pages and pages and without any embarrassment how he, as a boy, spied on women and masturbated. His neighbor, in shop windows, at the fair, ladies on the beach: Depardieu satisfied himself all the time. He wasn’t just a street dog but also a street fighter. With bluff and a big mouth he worked his way into the theater and film world. He showed up uninvited at auditions. On stage, in front of a full house, he even once copied the text from the actor next to him. He thought his colleague spoke too slowly. ‘He does what he wants. “He has no feelings of guilt or shame,” says Lionel Duroy. “This can make him rude, inappropriate and disrespectful.’ Depardieu had talent and grew into a French and international film star. Fame and money followed. Exotic destinations became reality and were no longer just dream destinations in the toilets of Orly airport. Gérard Depardieu (76) is now on trial. He is accused of sexual violence and rape. The trial is about the complaints of two women. More charges have been filed with the justice department, but they are still being investigated. At least sixteen women have told their stories in the press about the actor’s inappropriate behavior. The actor rejects all allegations. ‘Many women say that Depardieu continuously made sexually suggestive remarks’, says journalist Marine Turchi of the news site Mediapart. She has collected testimonies in recent years and published about them. Her research led to the trial that is now starting. ‘The women I spoke to also say that Depardieu groped their breasts and buttocks. He grabbed them in the crotch and allegedly put his hand in their underwear.’ The accusations cover the period from 2004 to 2022. ‘It’s not that Depardieu made a mistake once. No, the women say it was systematic behavior. It was his regular way of doing things.’ As soon as he entered, he would tap women left and right on their buttocks. He also worked carefully. ‘He often chose young actresses or women who worked behind the scenes. Women who he expected would not dare to protest. Victims I spoke to all said: Depardieu never did it with female colleagues who were also stars themselves, who would protest and they would be believed. Gérard Depardieu behaves with women the way he behaved with girls as a badly brought up boy in the 1960s”, says Lionel Duroy. ‘I’ve been on film sets with him. And as soon as he came in, he would start slapping women left and right on their bottoms. I told him: that’s really not right. Then he would laugh out loud. ‘It doesn’t matter, they like it,’ he would say. I don’t think he even meant it badly. He just wasn’t brought up. That’s why he’s displaying inappropriate behavior. He’s still behaving like that maladjusted child.’ In a television interview in 2017, Depardieu said that as a teenager in Châteauroux he had introduced ’two or three girls’ to American soldiers for sex. In his autobiography, he writes: ‘I haven’t changed one bit since I was 12. I still live exactly the same way. You’ll have to take me as I am.’ Journalist Marine Turchi says that French society is also to blame. ‘A lot of people knew what Depardieu was doing. But nobody did anything. Women who said something about it were not believed. And it also has to do with Depardieu himself. He is a star, an icon, he is admired, he has won many awards.”Depardieu is also excessive in all his behavior. Eating, drinking and political remarks: he always goes the extra mile. He exchanged his French citizenship for Russian because he thought he had to pay too much tax in France. The word ‘moderate’ is not in his vocabulary. A documentary about him was entitled The Man Who Knows No Boundaries. ”I think Gérard is going through the accusations of sexual violence and the trial with pain”, says Duroy. ”He never talks about love, but I know it did him good when he was still a crowd favorite. Now his career is over. He is no longer being offered roles. That is a sad end to his career for him.” Did Depardieu see it coming? Ten years ago he played the lead role in the film Welcome to New York. It was about the French politician Dominique Strauss-Kahn who had to appear in court for sexual misconduct. Depardieu said of the film: “It is the tragedy of a man at the top who falls victim to his sexual urges because he never questions his own behavior.” Gérard Depardieu will appear in court on March 24 and 25. He has been accused of sexual violence by two women. This allegedly happened in 2021 around the filming of the film Les volets verts. According to a set designer, the actor groped her entire body and said: “If you grab my big parasol, I’ll grab your pussy.” An assistant director says that Depardieu repeatedly grabbed her buttocks and breasts. After she complained to a colleague, Depardieu called her “a traitor.” He no longer wanted to work with her. “He shouted and cursed me.” The Paris Public Prosecutor is demanding an 18-month suspended prison sentence, a 20,000 euro fine, psychiatric treatment and registration on the sex offenders register. During the trial, Depardieu admitted to using vulgar and sexually suggestive language and grabbing one of the women by the hip. Gérard Depardieu is accused of sexual misconduct by around twenty women. This is the first case to come before the court. He also has to appear in court for raping an actress. Now that Gérard Depardieu has been given an 18-month suspended prison sentence for sexual assault, his ex-partner Hélène Bizot—who is raising their son alone—has decided to break her silence. In Voici, the French woman talks about her relationship with the actor and the father of her son, Jean Depardieu. She shares her anger and despair: “This is a mother’s cry. My son is called Jean Depardieu (named in tribute to Jean Carmet), he is almost 19 years old, and he is the son of Gérard Depardieu who is abandoning us today.” Hélène Bizot explains that she was indeed abandoned by the French actor.“Since 2012, we have been allowed to use a flat in Paris, but now Gérard has thrown us out onto the street,” she explains. “Last September, his entourage informed me that he was stopping the alimony payments and wanted to sell the flat.” Despite many pleas to this giant of French cinema, Bizot says that nothing changed his mind. “I begged him not to throw me out onto the street with our son and to give me some time to find a solution.” “A few months later, he sent me the list of charges for our house (which amount to 7,400 euros per year).” She adds: “He knows very well that I have not had an income for more than six months and that I am raising our son alone…”
Ross Davidsom (Wild)
The former frontman of British pop band Spandau Ballet has been found guilty of rape and sexual assault. Ross Davidson (36), who fronted Spandau Ballet between 2017 and 2019 and is better known by his stage name Ross Wild, was convicted on Thursday of abusing three women. The court heard that Davidson wanted to have sex up to six times a night and forced himself on the women, who rejected him. The singer denied the charges, saying: “I have never raped, sexually abused or coerced any woman in my life.” He was found guilty of raping one woman and sexually assaulting two others. Jurors acquitted him of one charge of sexually assaulting the woman he raped. Davidson was also convicted of voyeurism. The court heard that Davidson was “sadistic and manipulative” and had a secret desire to have sex with women while they were asleep and got a “kick” from filming the abuse. He told the court he was interested in “dressing up, sleep play and being open to other kinks”. “What sleep play is to me is a little sex game where someone pretends to be asleep and tries not to react while someone sexually stimulates them,” he said. “It never lasts more than a few minutes before both parties have no choice but to join in. It’s like a cheeky game.” Prosecutor Richard Hearnden described the singer at an earlier hearing as a “bit of a sex symbol” with a “dark side”. “He’s very good looking and physically fit. He sings, plays the guitar and seems to be charming and charismatic. His dark side isn’t the first thing that many women and girls notice about him. But the women in this case can all attest to that sinister side of his personality. He has raped and sexually abused a number of young women over the past decade.
Gerard Depardieu
And in March, the postponed trial against actor Gérard Depardieu will begin. More than ten women have accused him of sexual assault and rape. Depardieu has been accused of sexual abuse several times in recent years. In Monday’s case, two accusations from events in 2021 are central. He is accused of sexual assault by two women. During the filming of Les volets verts (2022), Depardieu is said to have pinned a crew member between his legs while groping her. The actor is known for the Asterix & Obelix films, among other things. He is also accused of rape by actress Charlotte Arnould. That accusation is not being dealt with in this trial. President Macron even stood up for the actor after he was accused of sexual assault.
Marry Edwards
Former 62-year-old BBC news presenter Huw Edwards has been charged with three counts of taking and sharing “indecent” images of children. The images were found on Edwards’ phone. The abuse is said to have taken place between December 2020 and April 2022. He shared the images via WhatsApp. Edwards was one of the most recognizable faces on British television for a long time. He worked for the BBC for 40 years and anchored major broadcasts around elections, the 2012 London Olympics and royal weddings. The BBC suspended Edwards a year ago after several young people accused him of sexual misconduct. He resigned from the broadcaster in April on “medical advice”.
The 25-year-old Julian F. raped a pig and a dog multiple times over the course of almost two years in 2021 and 2022. He is said to have been involved in more animal abuse, but the case against him was limited to these two. The pig was offered to him by a pig farmer in Overijssel who is also said to have filmed the abuse. The 25-year-old man from Schagen, Julian F., was sentenced to three years in prison and TBS with compulsory treatment on 23 July 2024, partly for child abuse, making child pornography and having sex with a dog. According to the court, the man acted very calculatingly when abusing the toddler. He did not care about the young victim for a moment and was only concerned with satisfying his own sexual urges, the presiding judge said in the verdict. The abuse was filmed and stored on the 25-year-old man’s computer. The animal was allegedly offered to him by a pig farmer in Overijssel, who is said to have filmed the abuse. According to the ANP news agency, the Public Prosecution Service’s investigation into the pig farmer is still ongoing. It is not known where in Overijssel the man lives. In addition to raping a pig, the man also abused a dog in Utrecht on several occasions. He shared his sexual fantasies with a 38-year-old man from Alkmaar. The man from Schagen also offered to babysit, where he confessed to abusing a two-year-old toddler. Julian F. was convicted of child and animal abuse in July. An investigation into suspects who were listed as contacts in F.’s telephone is ongoing in various regions. For example, the Public Prosecution Service in the East of the Netherlands, which includes Overijssel and Gelderland, is investigating nine people. They have been summoned for questioning or arrested, but are not currently in custody. The investigation focuses on various suspicions, such as indecent acts with animals or the production or distribution of animal pornography. Investigations are also ongoing in other regions. For example, there are two suspects in the Amsterdam region, three in the The Hague region and two in Zeeland-West-Brabant. In Utrecht, a lawsuit is already pending against a contact of F. According to the Public Prosecution Service, the 52-year-old man offered his dog to F. so that F. could have sex with the animal. The man is in custody, and the case will be brought before the judge on 6 February. At an earlier hearing in February, the judge requested a psychological examination at the Pieter Baan Centre. The investigations emerged from the criminal investigation into Julian F. In July, he was sentenced to three years in prison and compulsory psychiatric treatment for child and animal abuse. He committed the child abuse in a foster family. He also made images of this, which he shared with another man. That man was sentenced to 1.5 years in prison and compulsory psychiatric treatment. There were suspicions that F. had abused children in more families, but due to a lack of evidence, he was not prosecuted for this. The police did find images of child sexual abuse on F.’s computer. Julian F.had hundreds of phone numbers stored in his phone under different animal names, such as ‘pig’, ‘horse’ or ‘male’, NH Nieuws reports. These are probably numbers of contacts who played a role in the animal abuse.
Mohamed Al Fayed
Egyptian businessman Mohamed Al Fayed is accused of sexual abuse by twenty former employees. Five of them say they were raped by the deceased billionaire. According to lawyers, the number of women who say they were sexually abused by Fayed has now risen to 37. Five of the women in a documentary say that the businessman who died last year raped them. Another eight speak of sexual abuse, including attempted rape. Fayed also threatened that they should not go to the police. Al Fayed was the owner of the luxury department store Harrods, the five-star Ritz hotel in Paris and the Fulham football club. Al Fayed died last year at the age of 94. He was also the father of Dodi Fayed, who had an affair with British Princess Diana. The couple died in a car accident in Paris in 1997. Al Fayed’s abuse took place over a period of years. Harrods allegedly failed to intervene and brushed aside the misconduct. In a podcast for the news channel, at least 20 former employees of Al Fayed say he abused them. The abuse allegedly took place in London, Paris, Saint-Tropez and Abu Dhabi. He regularly made rounds of the shop floor of Harrods, looking for young female salespeople he found attractive. They were then promoted to jobs on the higher floors, where he had an office. The abuse took place at Harrods, but also at Al Fayed’s London apartment, the Ritz and his villa in Paris and on other trips. “We all saw each other walking through that door and we thought ‘poor girl, today it’s your turn’ but there was nothing we could do about it,” an anonymous Harrods employee says in a podcast. Other former employees say Al Fayed’s behaviour “was an open secret and that he used espionage, among other things, to exert pressure to prevent allegations from coming out.” Harrods is in talks with more than 250 women to settle allegations of sexual misconduct by Mohamed Al-Fayed. The number of women taking legal action continues to rise. Al-Fayed was (co-)owner of Harrods from the mid-1980s until 2010. His son Dodi died in a car crash in Paris in 1997, along with Princess Diana, the former wife of King Charles III. According to lawyer Bruce Drummond, more than 400 claims have been filed by women from Britain, the United States, Australia, Malaysia, Spain, South Africa and other countries. “We believe that this is abuse on an industrial scale,” Drummond said. He added that the abuse took place “within the walls of Harrods” but also at other locations connected to Al-Fayed’s business empire, such as Fulham Football Club, the Ritz Paris and his Surrey estate. also Salah, one of three brothers who bought the luxury department store Harrods together in 1985,accused of similar offences. Three former Harrods employees have also accused Salah, who died of pancreatic cancer in 2010, of sexual abuse and human trafficking. The women allege that Salah abused them between 1989 and 1997 in London, the south of France and Monaco. One of the women claims that she was raped by Salah after being drugged. The three women say they were also sexually abused by Mohamed Al-Fayed. The victims could receive up to £385,000 in compensation from the company. Harrods announced the scheme on 1 April 2025 and is giving victims one year to come forward. The department store has apologised to Al Fayed’s victims. “He abused his power wherever he went,” Harrods wrote on thewebsite where compensation can be requested.
Wander Franco
Rex Heuermann
New York police have arrested their first suspect in July 2023 in a case involving a suspected serial killer who is believed to have been active in the Long Island borough for years. The suspect is 59-year-old Rex Heuermann, owner of an architectural firm in New York. In 2020, a belt was found with the suspect’s possible initials on it. Authorities then launched a website where people could submit tips. The suspect was eventually arrested on Thursday. He is now officially charged with three of the murders, namely those of Amber Lynn Costello, Megan Waterman and Melissa Barthelemy. He has not yet been charged with the death of another woman, but he is considered the main suspect. He denied all charges during his appearance in court. Since 2010, human remains of at least ten victims have been found on a beach on Long Island. This is the first time that someone has been arrested after years of investigation. The so-called Gilgo Beach murder case has kept police busy for years and has led to conflicting theories about whether a serial killer was active in the region. The first human remains were found in 2010 on a remote stretch of beach. This happened during the search for a 23-year-old missing woman. However, it turned out to be a different woman. The following year, the bodies of nine more people were found in various parts of the island. Several victims were said to have been active in prostitution and had placed online advertisements prior to their deaths. They were all strangled. The man is recently divorced. His wife, Asa Ellerup, and his two children, Victoria Heuermann and Christopher Sheridan, do not believe he is guilty, but DNA testing of his hair is said to be positive. Ellerup worked at the Long Island Jewish Medical Center and was Heuermann’s second wife. They married in 1996 and share two children. His first wife was Elizabeth R. Ryan of North Brunswick. At work, the man was known as a stickler for detail and, according to his neighbors, you should avoid him. “Rex Heuermann is a devil walking among us. A predator who has destroyed families.” It was not pretty, how the 59-year-old architect was described Friday by Rodney Harrison, police commissioner in Suffolk County, New York. “And if it weren’t for our people, he would still be walking free.” The night before, police had gone to arrest the man in New York City, where his Fifth Avenue architectural firm is located. Heuermann had been under investigation for a year for his connection to the deaths of the Gilgo Four. While in custody, he was subsequently charged on January 16, 2024, with the deaths of four other women: Valerie Mack in 2000, Jessica Taylor in 2003, Maureen Brainard-Barnes in 2007 and Sandra Costilla in 1993. Charges for the murders of Amber Lynn Costello and Jessica Taylor were added in June, while an indictment accusing Heuermann of murdering Valerie Mack was unsealed in December. The Gilgo Four case caused quite a stir.It all started when officers found the body of 24-year-old Melissa Barthelemy near the beach on December 11, 2010, while they were actually searching for Shannan Gilbert (23) from New Jersey, who had been missing for more than half a year. Two days later, the bodies of three more murdered women were found: Maureen Brainard-Barnes, Amber Costello and Megan Waterman. The more they learned about the victims, the more investigators began to suspect that a serial killer had been at work. The modus operandi showed many similarities: the bodies of Barthelemy, Brainard-Barnes, Costello and Waterman were found in a similar position, tied up with a belt or tape. Three of them were also wrapped in burlap, and then there was the fact that all four worked as escorts, were not too tall and thin and advertised their services in the same way. In the months that followed, body parts of more than five other people were found in the area. But nothing seemed to indicate that they had anything to do with the Gilgo Four, so investigators continued to hunt for the serial killer behind those first four murders. It wasn’t until last year that investigators caught up with the architect. It started with a tip about a truck, a Chevrolet Avalanche to be exact, that a witness had seen parked in her driveway years before one of the victims disappeared. Investigators had compiled a list of people whose phone records indicated they had been in the area around the time of the murders, and it turned out that architect Heuermann had owned such a truck. His internet traffic also revealed that he had been doing regular research on the progress of the investigation. The real breakthrough came earlier this year, when investigators were able to obtain DNA from Heuermann via a pizza box that was found in the trash at his work. And guess what: his DNA matched that of a hair found on one of the victims. The man was quietly monitored for many weeks. He was still approaching sex workers, using false IDs and disposable phones, and because he had permits for no fewer than 92 firearms, fears grew that he would strike again. That fear, and the fact that the burden of proof had become so great, made the public prosecutor decide to have him arrested and officially prosecuted. In American newspapers, Heuermann is portrayed as a man with two faces. According to (ex-)colleagues and clients, he was a meticulous worker. An architect who impressed some with his eye for detail, but drove others to despair. He himself said about this in an interview that was posted on YouTube last year, that he is the one who gets called “when a routine job suddenly turns out not to be so obvious”. A man with a solid track record,who has worked for many clients and successfully designed buildings. Neighbors, on the other hand, talk about a dangerous and unpredictable person who once stood in his front yard with an axe to discourage children from asking him for treats on Halloween. “We would cross the street when we saw him,” says Nichols Ferchaw (24), one of those neighbors, in The New York Times . “He was not a person you wanted close to you.”
Mike Jeffries
Mike Jeffries (80), the homosexual ex-CEO of the American fashion brand Abercrombie & Fitch, was arrested in Florida in October 2024 on suspicion of sex trafficking. More than forty men have come forward with a complaint and say that they were raped, assaulted and drugged by him. Jeffries was CEO of the American fashion brand from 1992 to 2014. He was initially accused of sexual exploitation by eight people. Later, the suspicion of sex trafficking was added, a form of human trafficking in which people are taken to other countries to have sex for money under duress. Jeffries is said to have abused men under the guise of modeling for the fashion brand. The last claims against him date from the 1990s, when he started working at Abercrombie & Fitch. A&F is also being sued for negligence. A number of people who have filed a complaint say that they were already working for the company when the abuse took place. The case came to light after an investigation by the BBC. The British broadcaster discovered that Jeffries, along with his partner Matthew Smith and middleman James Jacobson, “scouted” young men for modeling jobs, while in reality they traded them for sex in the United States, Europe and North Africa. Young models were also allegedly asked to attend Jeffries’ events, where they were promised a career with Abercrombie. In reality, they were forced to perform sexual acts during these meetings. A lawyer for one of the men says the power imbalance was “extreme” and that Jeffries and Smith “blatantly exploited it”. Abercrombie allegedly turned a blind eye to this, in the interests of the company’s profits. Another man, who flew to New York for an A&F casting at Jeffries’ home, says he was asked if he would have sex with a man in exchange for money or gifts. When he refused the offer and said he was straight, they got into a struggle with Jeffries, who then allegedly raped him. Jeffries denies all allegations. He has been under house arrest since October, as have his two co-defendants Smith and Jacobson. Two other men have also been arrested, including Jeffries’ husband, Matthew Smith. The name of a third suspect has not yet been released. In 2023, it was already announced that Jeffries was accused of sexual exploitation by eight men. An intermediary went looking for men for him to pay to attend events of the CEO and his husband. Some of the men said they had been misled about the nature of those meetings. Others said they knew they were sexual meetings, but did not know what was expected of them. The victims said they had been pressured into participating in sexual acts. The intermediary, James Jacobson,would have promised them a career as a model for Abercrombie & Fitch if they went to the meetings. Jeffries was in charge of the fashion chain between 1992 and 2014 and made the clothing wildly popular among teenagers and twenty-somethings. Boys with bare torsos stood at the entrances of the stores. Customers could have their pictures taken with them. Jeffries was already under fire when he left because of poor sales figures and statements about the clientele he wanted at Abercrombie & Fitch. According to him, the brand was only intended for “cool kids” and “good-looking people”.
Fred Houben
The bassist of the Limburg punk rock band Heideroosjes is in custody in a child pornography case. Fred Houben (50) was arrested on Tuesday 25 February. He will remain in custody for the time being. Houben will also immediately stop playing bass in the band. The Limburger from Sevenum was arrested because he is suspected of having ‘involved himself with child pornographic images’. The Public Prosecution Service does not want to elaborate on this while the police investigation is still ongoing. On Thursday 13 March, the council chamber of the Limburg court decided to extend his pre-trial detention for a period of thirty days. His lawyer, Guy Koppen, has appealed against this. ‘My client has a family and his own company, in addition to being a bassist. There are many reasons why he should not remain in custody any longer. According to Koppen, the case mainly revolves around possession of child pornography. “He sought extreme tension online to deal with stress, which he experienced both professionally and privately. He wanted to kill tension with tension, so to speak. He denies any sexual preference for minors and no evidence has been found for this. According to the lawyer, H. will ‘publicly account for this’ at a later time. “He is now asking for peace and space to find a way to deal with this, together with his family. The 50-year-old Houben has been a member of Heideroosjes since its foundation in 1989. The punk rock band is known for songs such as Sjonnie & Anita, Klapvee, Damclub hooligan and Lekker belang, and achieved great success in the 90s in particular. In 2012, the band decided to stop, but the foursome made a fresh start six years ago. The other band members say on Instagram that they were shocked by the news about their bassist. ‘We never saw this coming. The facts that Fred is suspected of clash terribly with the values that we as Heideroosjes have always represented’, they write. ‘Fred has indicated that he does not want to burden us with this private matter. He will therefore immediately step down as bassist of our band. We are deeply saddened by this bitter and sad end to our collaboration since 1989. But above all, our hearts go out to everyone involved in this case, and to Fred’s family. We have to come to terms with this event and need time to do so. Whether the case will have consequences for the performance of Heideroosjes at Nirwana Tuinfeest on 8 August is not yet known to the organisation of the festival in Lierop.
Alan Jones
Australian former radio presenter Alan Jones was arrested on November 17, 2024 on suspicion of sexually assaulting young men. The sexual offenses are said to have taken place between 2001 and 2019. Jones, now 83, is charged with 24 sexual offenses. The youngest of the eight victims was seventeen at the time, writes The Sydney Morning Herald . Jones denies all allegations. Jones is one of the most influential media personalities in Australia. He presented radio shows for about forty years, including a popular breakfast show on radio station 2GB. In 1984, he became coach of the Australian rugby team. He led the team to 102 victories in four years. The media personality is known in Australia for his conservative views and sharply questioning prime ministers on the radio. Jones has previously been the subject of several lawsuits for defamation.
R. Kelly
American singer R. Kelly (57) was sentenced to twenty years in prison on appeal for child pornography. The artist became known worldwide for his hit “I Believe I Can Fly” and his 75 million records sold. He was convicted in September 2021 for abusing young people and teenage girls for years. In June 2022, he was sentenced to 30 years in prison by a federal court in New York. In February 2023, he was also sentenced to twenty years in prison for producing child pornography and making a minor disappear. The judge ruled that he only had to serve one more year in prison after serving his first sentence. By using a complex plan to silence the victims, he avoided the consequences for a long time. The trials against R. Kelly were seen as an important milestone in the #MeToo movement: for the first time, the majority of plaintiffs consisted of black women accusing a black artist. During the trial, clips were aired from videos showing R. Kelly sexually assaulting young girls, one of whom was only 14 years old. For decades, R. Kelly’s success was tarnished by allegations of sexual assault, the subject of persistent rumors. For a long time, he managed to silence them by buying them off. The singer briefly married 15-year-old star Aaliyah in 1994, whose parents subsequently annulled the marriage. The singer and actress died in a plane crash in 2001. The first accusations against the singer surfaced more than two decades ago. He was charged in 2002 with filming sexual acts between him and a 14-year-old girl, but was eventually acquitted in 2008. His record label, RCA, a subsidiary of Sony Music, dropped him in early 2019 after a documentary about his accusations of multiple sexual acts. sexual assaults and in February of the same year he was accused of sexual assault, mainly against minors. R. Kelly’s eldest daughter says she was abused by her father when she was 8 or 9 years old. The now 26-year-old Buku Abi, born Joann Kelly, speaks publicly about it for the first time in the new documentary Karma: a daughter’s journey from TVEI. Kelly allegedly groped Abi while she was asleep. “I remember waking up and him touching me. And I didn’t know what to do, so I just lay there and pretended to be asleep,” she says, crying in the documentary, according to American media. Abi kept the alleged abuse a secret for years. “I was too scared to tell anyone. I was too scared to tell my mother,” she says. The woman did so later, when Kelly was in the news due to allegations of sexual abuse. She filed a complaint against her father,but the justice system could no longer prosecute him for this because they had “waited too long.” “At that moment it felt like I had come forward with it for nothing.
R. Kelly (58) has filed a request for temporary release because he fears for his life in prison. This is stated in a new document that Kelly’s lawyers have filed with the federal court in Chicago. The convicted singer accuses prison officials of a murder plot.
“There is now explicit evidence that the officers charged with the protection of detainees planned the murder of Mr. Kelly,” attorney Beau B. Brindley said in the filing. R. Kelly was sentenced to 30 years in prison in 2022 after pleading guilty to charges including sexual abuse. He was later sentenced to 20 years in prison for child pornography and extortion.
According to American media, this news will be received with skepticism in many circles. The statement states that inmate Mikeal Glenn Stine was ordered by a guard to “execute R. Kelly” to prevent damaging information from coming out. Attorney Brindley asked a judge in vain to release Kelly under house arrest.
Thaddeus Kotik/’Father Thadd’
On Caldey, an island off the coast of Wales, monks abused children for four decades. Victims had been reporting for years, but their complaints were repeatedly swept under the carpet. In total, more than 50 children were abused on the island. Victims were systematically confronted with “denial and a pervasive assumption that they were lying.” A total of 16 victims shared their experiences. The investigation found that between 1960 and 1992, at least 54 children, some as young as 3, were sexually abused by both monks and lay people, including some with criminal records who lived on the island under false names. In the most extreme cases, the abuse even involved rape. The vast majority of victims are believed to have visited the island on holiday with family or on trips arranged and paid for by Catholic youth groups and schools. The investigation focuses specifically on Thaddeus Kotik, known as ‘Father Thadd’, who abused a series of children in the 1970s and 1980s and evaded justice until his death in 1992. Kotik used ‘complex strategies’ to lure young children and gain the trust of their parents. Kotik kept a pet tortoise and numerous kittens to attract the interest of young children before luring them to the island’s dairy or to hidden coves where he could commit his abuse unnoticed. In some cases, he won he gained the trust of parents and offered to babysit their children so he could abuse his victims unhindered. One victim was 10 years old when Kotik reportedly gave him “chocolate and sweets” before “hugging and kissing” him. The man said he was afraid of getting into trouble if he did not agree to meet the monk and that he had even volunteered to do so to protect his younger brother from the same fate. Father Thaddeus Kotik was buried on the island after his death in 1992. In 2017, an anonymous female victim called for the monk’s remains to be exhumed and removed from the island, expressing her sorrow that a place of such natural beauty should “be home to repulsive monsters.” But anyone who thought the abuse on Caldey died with Father Thaddeus was mistaken, as it remained a safe haven for pedophiles well into the 21st century. In In 2011, then 58-year-old Father John Shannon was sentenced to eight months in prison for downloading 740 indecent images of children aged between nine and 15. Paul Ashton, originally from West Sussex, went on the run in 2004 after being charged with possessing indecent images of children. He was arrested on the island in 2011 after a Caldey resident recognised him from a wanted list and tipped off police.The convicted paedophile lived comfortably at the abbey under a false name. In return, Ashton allegedly ‘operated the island’s satellite internet and telephone system, managed online accommodation bookings and accounts’. It later emerged that he had abused his access to the abbey’s IT and internet systems to download thousands more indecent images of children. Ashton, then 59, pleaded guilty in March 2012 and was sentenced to 30 months in prison. A civil claim against the abbey eventually resulted in a settlement for six victims in March 2017. Rebecca, who lived on the island until she was five-and-a-half years old and suffered sexual abuse, described the compensation as ‘hush money’. Father Jan Rossey, who was appointed abbot last year, said: ‘I sincerely apologise. I am so sorry for all the suffering, but also afterwards, for the victims, for not being listened to.’
Brian L
Brian L. (28) from Deventer was convicted in 2022 for sexually abusing and blackmailing underage girls. He manipulated victims between the ages of 10 and 18 into sending nude images and then put them under severe pressure. One of the girls was even forced to make recordings of her younger sister. In some cases, L. shared the images with family and friends of the victims if they refused to cooperate further. In 2023, L. made another mistake. When he was still living in Gramsbergen, he abused two girls aged 5 and 8 in a toilet building at the De Zandstuve campsite in Rheeze. “I am 10 years old, but I was 8 when you put my hand in my pants. Now I am afraid. Afraid of men, afraid of groups, afraid of the world,” one of the girls stated in court at the time. Despite the demand for a 4-year prison sentence, L. was only sentenced to 2 years in prison, of which 1 year was conditional. His promise to improve his life played a role in this. Brian L. (27) had already been convicted twice for serious sexual offences and had to undergo intensive treatment and was ‘not allowed to have contact with children in any way’. He did, because the judiciary now suspects Brian L. again of raping a 5-year-old girl in Zutphen on 12 October 2024. He is also accused of sexual acts with a 10-year-old girl and of indecent acts in the presence of two children aged 5 and 7. On 27 March 2025, the court also accused him of sexually approaching thirteen children between the ages of 5 and 10 in Schalkhaar and Zutphen. This would include showing a penis or underwear. Brian L. will remain in prison for the time being and attended the hearing via a video link from the prison in Almelo. He has since had conversations with a psychologist and a psychiatrist. The next hearing is scheduled for 22 May. Even on that date, there will be no substantive hearing.
Benno Larue
Former swimming instructor Benno L., who served time in the Netherlands for large-scale child abuse , has been convicted again in Germany. In the Netherlands, he was sentenced to six years in prison on appeal in 2011 for abusing 57 children when he worked as a swimming instructor in Den Bosch. In Germany, he is said to have abused children again between 2018 and 2022, according to Panorama magazine. He has been sentenced to nine years in prison, the German court that convicted him confirmed to the NOS. L. has appealed against his sentence. According to Panorama, the now 74-year-old L. set himself up as a family friend about 50 kilometers from the Dutch border who did odd jobs and looked after the children of two families. He did this under a false name. Panorama writes that L. abused the children of those families, including when they stayed with him. On May 20, 2022, the mother of one of the families filed a complaint. On May 10, 2023, the judge ruled that Benno L. had again been guilty of child abuse, making child pornography and violating personal privacy. In the Netherlands, L. was released in 2013, after serving two-thirds of his sentence. L.’s case, which came to light in 2009, caused a great deal of commotion. L. was tried in the Netherlands for three attempted rapes, attempted sexual penetrations and 29 assaults. The case also involved forty cases of indecent assault and possession of child pornography. He deliberately sought out mentally handicapped girls for his actions, “to keep the chance of detection as small as possible”, he said in court. After his release, L. was given a ban from the eleven Brabant municipalities where his victims lived. The court in Aachen, Germany, ultimately imposed TBS on Benno L.. Experts considered the chance of recurrence to be high, which is why he has now also been sentenced to TBS. According to one of the experts, L. continues to downplay his actions. She compared her findings with those of her Dutch colleagues and concluded that L. does not understand the seriousness of his misconduct. According to her, he feels that “the Dutch have exaggerated everything” and he emphasises that he never hurt the children. In 2011, L. was sentenced to six years in prison in the Netherlands on appeal for abusing dozens of girls during swimming lessons. Many of the victims were mentally handicapped. He was released in 2013, after serving two-thirds of his sentence. He moved to Germany. About fifty kilometres across the border, he presented himself under a different name as a ‘family friend’ who did odd jobs and looked after the children of two families. On 20 May 2022, the mother of one of the families filed a complaint. Investigation into L. revealed that four girls from one family occasionally stayed with him. The girls had to take turns sleeping in his bedroom. He groped them while doing so. He also secretly recorded the children when they dried themselves. L. could still appeal against the TBS measure, but the court in Aachen has now decided that his appeal is unfounded. The measure will therefore remain in place.
Jörg L.
In 2019 , the police in Germany were confronted with an abuse case in which two fathers swapped their children in order to abuse them . In the case, which started in the town of Bergisch Gladbach near Cologne, nine victims have been identified so far, the youngest of whom is not yet a year old. A total of 65 children have been rescued in the German police investigation in North Rhine-Westphalia into the child abuse network around Jörg L. 429 suspects have also been identified, including two Dutch nationals. The police in Cologne announced this at a press conference held to mark the end of the investigation. M ain suspect Jörg L. was arrested for abusing his then 2-year-old daughter. During the investigation, the police came across enormous amounts of images of child abuse. L.’s phone alone contained 130,000 photos and 12,000 videos. The police were able to identify thousands of suspects. Some are said to have abused their own children and distributed the images online. They also exchanged tips, for example about administering tranquilizers to children. Of the thousands of suspects who were in the picture, 429 were identified. According to the German police, two Dutch suspects have not yet been arrested. The 43-year-old main suspect was sentenced to 12 years in prison and TBS in October 2020. In the state where most suspects and victims come from, seven suspects are being held awaiting trial.
Jared Leto
The 53-year-old actor and musician is said to have behaved inappropriately for years towards at least nine women, some of whom were minors. The victims told their story in an article in the magazine Air Mail. Leto is said to have asked sexually suggestive questions to a 16-year-old girl, walked naked into a room for a 17-year-old girl and masturbated for an 18-year-old while she was helping. According to the women, there is a long-term pattern and his inappropriate behavior is “an open secret”. A representative for Leto “emphatically” denies all allegations. The actor, who won an Oscar in 2014 for his role in Dallas Buyers Club, has not yet responded. Leto is also the frontman of the rock band Thirty Seconds to Mars.
Kylian Mbappe
French professional footballer Kylian Mbappé is involved in an investigation into a rape in Stockholm. Mbappé was staying with some friends in the Swedish capital Stockholm last week. The group has since been accused and investigated for the rape of a woman. The victim is said to have sought medical help. On October 14, the press reported that the investigation into rape and sexual assault is specifically aimed at Mbappé. The police consider the Frenchman to be “reasonably suspicious.” That is the lowest level of suspicion in Sweden.
Donny Marwa
The 25-year-old Donny M. has been sentenced by the court in Maastricht to a prison term of 25 years and TBS with compulsory treatment for the kidnapping and sexual abuse of, and the murder of, 9-year-old Gino van der Straeten. The fact that the sentence is lower than the demand has to do with the diminished responsibility of Donny M. at the time of the sexual abuse and killing of the boy, says the court. Nevertheless, the court also concluded that Donny M. was indeed capable of making considerations and foreseeing the consequences of his actions at certain moments, such as the kidnapping of Gino. He displayed calculating behavior from the moment he saw Gino walking on the street and decided that he wanted to have sex with him. “If it couldn’t be done the easy way, then it would be done the hard way,” according to the court. Donny M. did try to reassure the crying and screaming boy from time to time, but according to the court, he did so out of pure calculation. The Public Prosecution Service had demanded a prison sentence of 28 years. The public prosecutor called the kidnapping and killing of Gino ’the worst nightmare of every parent, every sister, every brother’. According to him, Gino was ’the prey of a predator who was looking for sex with a little boy’. About Gino he said: “His suffering deserves the first focus in the handling of this case.” And: “He fought, but it was not a fair fight.” The prosecutor described Donny M.’s actions as ‘extremely calculating’. “The suspect had complete control.” The prosecution called the suspect’s statements that he heard voices and acted in a kind of trance ‘completely unbelievable’. “All things considered, it can be legally and convincingly proven that the suspect kidnapped 9-year-old Gino, severely abused him, that he sexually abused Gino, that he murdered Gino by suffocating him with a pillow.” That is why the prosecution considers the suspicion of ‘premeditated murder’ to be appropriate. Psychiatric examination by the Pieter Baan Center has shown that Donny M. suffers from multiple disorders, including a serious personality disorder and a pedophile disorder. The suspect also has a ’tendency to be untruthful’. The Public Prosecution Service agrees ’that the facts cannot be fully attributed to him’. Donny M. himself admitted that he kidnapped, sexually abused and killed Gino on June 1, 2022. A year and a half before Donny M murdered 9-year-old Gino, the police in Limburg found child pornography on his phone that was confiscated in connection with fireworks offenses. The basic team reported this and then nothing was done about it. The phone itself was still at TBKK. However, it escaped their attention. The Limburg police attribute this to the busy time when the phone came in. The team consists of seven people who handle many investigation cases.Due to the corona measures, these specialists also had to take to the streets to ensure that people adhered to the curfew in force at the time.
Killing Gino ‘I did it without thinking about it’, the suspect stated during the interrogation, but the public prosecutor does not attach much value to that statement: “He realised that Gino had to die to stop the screaming. He pressed the pillow with force on the face of the struggling Gino, until he finally stopped protesting, screaming and crying. That day, Donny M. had called in sick at work, although he was not ill. He took a cocktail of drugs in his car. Then came the meeting with Gino in Kerkrade. “I wanted to eat something because I had taken ecstasy”, the suspect said in court on Monday, “so I drove on. Suddenly I saw Gino. It was as if a switch had been flipped. My focus was only on him. I wanted to do something with him sexually.” Donny M. then followed Gino in his car and parked his car near the playground where Gino was playing football with other children. He played along to ‘build Gino’s trust’. “Eventually I got it into my head that I wanted to take him somewhere else.” After playing football, he offered to take Gino home. During the car ride, Gino started screaming. “I went completely crazy from all that screaming,” Donny M. stated. At home, he drugged his victim with MDMA and Viagra to see if the boy would get excited. “That would make the situation better. That there would be no tension. He also force-fed Gino ecstasy and other drugs. And he abused and raped him, inflicting multiple injuries on Gino’s body and skin. The suspect then killed Gino by strangulation. Around the same time, Donny M. searched the internet for ‘suffocation by a pillow’. He dumped Gino’s body, wrapped in garbage bags, behind a fence. Three days later he was arrested, a short time later he confessed to his actions and showed the police where Gino’s body was. Gino’s sister Naomi also spoke to the suspect, telling him, among other things, that their mother had ‘died of immense grief’. The mother of Gino and his sisters died a few months after the death of her son. Both sisters are in ‘disbelief’ about what went wrong in the investigation into a telephone belonging to M. on which child pornography was found in 2021, which was not registered after transfer between police services. The sisters are considering holding the police liable for this. In his indictment, the public prosecutor explicitly discussed that Donny had previously been caught in possession of a large amount of child pornography. He called it ‘worrying’ that many of those photos show young boys tied up with tape. Donny M. was also previously convicted of sexually abusing an underage boy.
Martin Nnekoui
Martijn Nnekoui , the former director of cultural platform Moam, was in court for nine sexual offenses. N. has been accused by more than a hundred men of violent and sexually transgressive behavior and of indecent acts with minors and attempted serious assault, for which the Public Prosecution Service is demanding an eight-year prison sentence. N. founded Moam in 2014 to connect young talent to (fashion) brands. Institutions such as the Rijksmuseum, ARTIS, HEMAand Het Concertgebouw collaborate with the platform. The VPRO also made a documentary about N.’s career. He was seen as one of the most influential people in the Dutch fashion and culture world. In 2018, the American magazine Forbes named him one of the thirty most successful young entrepreneurs in Europe. The cultural platform came under fire in March 2021 after a joint investigation by Het Parool and NRC into director Martijn N. The newspapers spoke to 146 people involved. They also collected witness statements and documents, such as conversations on WhatsApp and Facebook and a police report. 28 men accuse N. of violent and sexually transgressive behavior and drugging. Eleven of them were minors during their contact with N. The alleged victims speak of violent and unsafe sex, assault and rape. Some suspect that they were drugged with GHB. The statements cover a period of ten years that started in 2010. The Moam board then suspended the director. Investigations were launched at Moam and the Amsterdam Fashion Institute (AMFI), the higher professional education institution to which he was affiliated. These showed that both organizations have an unsafe working environment. N. allegedly plays an important role in this. This outcome is the reason for the Moam board to definitively end the collaboration with him. The board previously concluded that the foundation has little future, because institutions and sponsors had withdrawn due to the commotion. N. was arrested in January 2022 on suspicion of two rapes and sexual abuse of a minor. He awaits his trial in freedom. Almost three years after the arrest, it was announced that the now 36-year-old N. was officially prosecuted by the Public Prosecution Service (OM). In the meantime, more men have told their stories to the police. N. was suspected of rape in nine cases, but there was insufficient evidence for this. In two cases, the men were between twelve and sixteen years old at the time. The judge ruled on October 23. The attempted serious assault took place in Sweden in 2015 when he was staying there with a friend, whom he subsequently assaulted. Martijn was sentenced to eighteen months in prison, of which eight months were suspended, for indecent acts with two boys and for an assault. He was also charged with drugging and raping boys and men, but was acquitted due to lack of evidence. The Public Prosecution Service had demanded an eight-year prison sentence. The court considered him to be ‘somewhat diminished responsible’, partly because he has been diagnosed with multiple personality disorders.
Michael Panhuis
Michael Panhuis (27) from Zeewolde was arrested for the disappearance of Anne Faber (25) Anne Faberhas been missing since September 29. She went on a bike ride through Soest that day, after which she disappeared without a trace. Panhuis had already been sentenced to 12 years in prison in 2012 because he raped two girls aged 16 and 17 in the night of April 30 to May 1 (Queen’s Day) in 2010. He threatened the two girls in Nijkerk with a fake firearm and made them perform sexual acts on each other, after which he raped them. The man told witnesses that he was proud of his actions and that “a dream had come true”. He suffered from a personality disorder with borderline and antisocial features. He was also addicted to alcohol, cocaine and Ritalin. After the rapes, he also committed several extortions, attempted robbery with violence in association and illegal possession of weapons. The Arnhem court initially sentenced him to 16 years in prison, but on appeal the sentence was reduced by 4 years. He did not receive TBS at the time because he refused to cooperate with a psychiatric examination. At the time of Anne Faber’s disappearance, he was staying in the psychiatric clinic Altrecht Aventurijn in Den Dolder and was in a resocialization program, the so-called detention phasing. Convicted persons are eligible for such a program one and a half years before the end of a prison sentence. In 2012, he was convicted of the rape of the two girls and at the time of Anne Faber’s murder, he was in a forensic psychiatric clinic in Den Dolder, a place along Faber’s bicycle route. Anne Faber’s body was eventually found in a nature reserve in Zeewolde. The forensic investigation showed that Panhuis had used a lot of violence. This was concluded from the severe injuries and a large number of bruises, which had been inflicted while still alive. He killed Anne by cutting her throat with a knife and first buried her provisionally under some leaves and later killed her shallowly under the sand at the former Soesterberg air base. He left or hid some of Anne’s belongings, such as her coat, bicycle, backpack and cards, in the area later that evening at various locations. The next evening he borrowed his mother’s car, drove to Zeewolde and dug a hole on a forest path there. He then drove back to Soest, where he dug up Faber’s body, put it in the car and took it to Zeewolde. There he cleaned the body with chlorine, after which he reburied it. He had the car cleaned. Only after some time did Panhuis provide the police with information about the place where he had buried the body. In July 2018, Michael Panhuis was sentenced in the first instance to 28 years in prison, TBS with compulsory treatment and to pay damages of over €100,000 for the abduction, rape and killing of Faber. On appeal, he was again sentenced to the same prison sentence and TBS in July 2019.He was also ordered to pay Faber’s parents and brother at least 137,354.65 euros in damages. He was also convicted of assaulting two security guards in the Pieter Baan Centrum and three employees of this psychiatric clinic, where he was staying at the time of the preliminary investigation. Panhuis was not convicted of murder , but of a special type of manslaughter that is called “qualified manslaughter” in legal terms. It could not be proven that he had killed Anne intentionally and with premeditation, although there is much evidence to suggest this. A life sentence was not imposed because this cannot be combined with TBS. Moreover, in practice a life sentence would have meant that Panhuis could have been released after 25 years without having received adequate treatment. The Public Prosecution Service considers this scenario completely irresponsible.The fact that the SWAT team had caused him an avulsion fracture to make him confess where the body was was not considered a reason for a reduced sentence, because the treatment had not resulted in him making a relevant, incriminating statement. In June 2020, the Supreme Court reduced the imposed prison sentence by four months. Under political pressure, Minister Dekker then no longer allowed transfers for prisoners who did not cooperate in providing all the necessary information. With the Forensic Care Decree, which the cabinet agreed to, more information exchange was made mandatory from the beginning of June 2019. Data from the personal file (including the pro Justitia report and probation reports), the treatment file and information about the prisoner’s compliance with treatment had to be shared with the forensic institution and/or the probation service.
Dominique Pelicot
French Dominique, the ex-husband of Dominique Pelicot, drugged and abused his wife for almost ten years. He also had her raped by strangers while she was unconscious. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison and will not appeal. The public prosecutor had demanded the same prison sentence for the Frenchman who is suspected in the notorious serial rape case. A total of 51 men are on trial in the case, which revolves around the years of abuse of the now 71-year-old Gisèle Pelicot. “The maximum sentence of 20 years is a long sentence, but at the same time too little, if you look at the seriousness of what happened,” prosecutor Laure Chabaud told the judge at the end of November. Pelicot believes she was raped about two hundred times. Frenchman Dominique Pelicot asked for forgiveness during his closing statement. The 50 co-defendants could be identified on the basis of video footage that Dominique herself made of the rapes. They were all found guilty, ranging from sexual abuse to violent rape. Some suspects stated that they had been forced by others, had been drinking or possibly had been drugged themselves. Pelicot called these statements ‘unacceptable and intolerable’. The rape case has led to growing calls for stricter laws against sexual violence in France. Caroline Darian, the couple’s daughter, is accusing her father of rape. She is convinced that he drugged and abused her, just as he had done to her mother for years. During her mother’s trial, Darian had already said that she was certain that her father had abused her as well. Among the 20,000 photos and videos that the police found at his home were two photos of Darian, in which she is lying almost naked and unconscious on a bed. She recognised her own home in the images. She did not recognise the underwear she was wearing and she was also lying in a position that is unusual for her. During the trial, Dominique Pelicot vehemently denied that he had ever touched his daughter. He gave contradictory statements about the photos. Darian, 46, is taking the case to gain recognition for what was done to her, she told AFP. But above all, she wants to show other victims that “things can be done and that we must never give up.”
A similar case recently occurred in Belgium
In the Belgian province of Limburg, a banker was arrested on June 25, 2025, on suspicion of years of serious abuse of his wife. The man, whose identity has not been made public, drugged his wife with strong sleeping and pain medication for about ten years, causing her to lose consciousness regularly. During these periods of unconsciousness, he repeatedly raped her, using “all kinds of attributes”. Almost all of these acts were filmed by the perpetrator. Unlike the high-profile French case of Dominique Pelicot, in which third parties were involved, the Belgian suspect acted alone.
The woman suffered from unexplained complaints for years. She often woke up feeling drowsy and forgetful, and could not remember what she had talked about with her children the night before. Initially, she attributed these symptoms to fatigue or other causes. Only later did she begin to suspect a connection with her husband. She noticed that she felt noticeably better and could remember her evenings on days when her husband had not made her a cup of tea, which was otherwise a fixed ritual.
Driven by these observations, the woman decided to go to her family doctor. A blood test, performed in early 2025, revealed that her body contained traces of frequently administered sleeping and pain medication, which had been taken without her knowledge. These findings led to a police investigation, during which a search was carried out at the couple’s home on 20 June 2025. During this raid, several digital data carriers were seized, including hard drives and USB sticks. On these media, the police found footage that, according to the authorities, showed “extreme forms of rape”.
On 27 June 2025, the court in Limburg decided to extend his pre-trial detention by two months, pending further investigation and possible charges. The investigation is still ongoing, and the authorities have indicated that more details may follow after analysis of the seized material. The case has caused a great deal of commotion in Belgium because of the seriousness of the crimes and the systematic nature of the abuse.
Sven Pichal
The 45-year-old Pichal, presenter of a consumer program on VRT radio, has been given a suspended prison sentence of three years for distributing child pornography. He will remain out of prison if he does not reoffend in the next five years and adheres to several other conditions. For example, he will be banned from alcohol and drugs, he will have to undergo therapy and he will never be allowed to have contact with children again. The Belgian radio presenter, was arrested in August 2023 after a report that he was sharing images of child abuse online. Dozens of photos of abuse were found on his phone, including images of babies. He also appeared to fantasize about child abuse in conversations. “The facts are very serious,” the judge ruled in the verdict. “They show an excessively reduced sense of standards, a reprehensible mentality and a total lack of respect for the suffering hidden behind images of sexual abuse of these extremely young children.” The Public Prosecution Service had therefore demanded 37 months in prison, of which at least one year unconditional. He would also have to pay a fine of 8,000 euros. The judge partially agreed with the latter demand: half of the fine was conditional. The sentence was lower because Pichal had no criminal record. He also confessed and apologized to the victims. The case caused quite a stir in Belgium because he was a well-known presenter. He also regularly sought the media as an advocate for the rights of the LGBTI community. Pichal immediately resigned from the VRT after his arrest. Shortly before the verdict, there was another incident. A man sprayed Pichel with a liquid when he entered the court. According to Belgian media, it was urine. Pichal, who arrived wearing a face mask and sunglasses as usual, was hit on his hood with the liquid. The perpetrator fled. Pichal’s lawyer assumes that he will still be prosecuted for the attack on his client. Three men with whom Pichal had contact were previously convicted. The heaviest sentence was for a man who had not only distributed child pornography, but had also raped two children himself. He was sentenced to seven years in prison. The other two, like Pichal, were given suspended prison sentences of 30 and 18 months.
Thijs Römer
Actor Thijs Römer sent sexually suggestive text messages to three girls under the age of eighteen and was sentenced in August 2024 to a prison sentence of three months (two of which were conditional) and the maximum community service order of 240 hours. The judge found him guilty of seducing the girls and acquiring child pornography. He made them commit indecent acts on themselves and send nude photos, according to the judge. This happened between 2015 and 2017, when the girls were 14, 15 and 16 years old. The trio were fans of the actor. He also has to pay his victims 13,600 euros, but he does not have that money, according to his lawyer Bénédicte Ficq. It is not known whether Thijs has already paid the 13,600 euros in damages to his victims. Römer did not appeal and was allowed to return to his wife Linda de Mol.
Jimmy Savile
Jimmy Savile was a well-known television personality and often came into contact with his victims through his creative projects for the BBC and his charity work for the NHS. He spent 20 years from 1964 presenting Top of the Pops , aimed at a teenage audience, and an overlapping 20 years presenting Jim’ll Fix It , on which he helped fulfil the wishes of viewers, mainly children. During his lifetime, there were two police investigations into reports about Savile, the first of which was publicised in 1958, but neither resulted in any charges; both reports concluded that there was insufficient evidence to support charges relating to sexual offences. Sporadic allegations of child abuse were made against him dating back to 1963, but these were not widely publicised until after his death. On 12 November 2012, the Metropolitan Police announced that the scale of sexual allegations reported against Savile was “unprecedented” in the UK, with a total of 450 alleged victims contacting police in the ten weeks since the investigation began. Officers recorded 199 crimes in 17 police areas in which Savile was a suspect, including 31 allegations of rape in seven police areas. Of those who came forward to report abuse, 82% were women and 80% were children or young people. According to a former Broadmoor nurse, Savile said he performed necrophiliac acts on corpses at the Leeds General Infirmary mortuary. Savile was said to have been friends with the head undertaker, who gave him almost unlimited access.
Justin Heath Smith
A well-known porn actor, Justin Heath Smith , known as “Austin Wolf,” has been arrested for sending and receiving at least 200 videos of child pornography, including one of a 10-year-old boy being tied up and raped. The actor was arrested in late June on charges filed by U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damian Williams and the FBI. Authorities say Smith, 43, used a Telegram account to exchange the porn with another user. They later found the porn stored on a memory card in his New York City apartment. Smith, who has more than 947,500 followers on X, where he distributes much of his adult film material, is charged with two alleged offenses: one count of distribution and receipt of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography.
Donald Trump
Donald Trump’s criminal record includes six criminal cases, including paying hush money to a porn actress from party funds, embezzling secret government documents to his home on his Mar-a-Lago estate, his role in the Capitol storming, pressuring Vice President Mike Pence, election fraud, conspiracy and two civil cases for property fraud and defamation after sexual abuse and unprotected sex. Trump must pay an additional $83.3 million to writer E. Jean Carroll, who previously accused him of rape. In May of last year , Trump was already sentenced to pay $5 million in the civil lawsuit about the sexual abuse and defamation and last September he also faced a sentence to pay damages in this second defamation case. The amount of the bail was reduced from $454 million to $175 million. In January 2025, he was officially found guilty for his role in the hush money payments to porn actress Stormy Daniels. He was given an unconditional discharge, meaning he was found guilty but given no further punishment or conditions. This makes him the first sitting president with a criminal record. You can read about his dealings with Jeffrey Epstein in the relevant chapter. Bongino was appointed FBIO deputy director by Trump and has a wealth of inside deep-state information. He will be working with FBI Director Kash Patel , who has had a long-running beef with the FBI and CIA, particularly over his handling of national security secrets, prompting the CIA to ask the first Trump Justice Department to launch a criminal investigation into his activities. The CIA alleged that Patel, in an effort to discredit the FBI’s investigation into Russian interference, had distributed classified information about Russian efforts to interfere in the 2016 presidential election to government officials who were not authorized to see it. Patel was one of 43 people whose phone records were secretly obtained in a wide-ranging investigation into leaks during Trump’s first presidency.
Gerard Tuns
Utrecht serial rapist Gerard Tuns has spoken for the first time about the gruesome and extremely violent rapes for which he was convicted on appeal. He will be eligible for early release in March 2025, but according to the Public Prosecution Service, T. is not ready for that yet. T. was active in the 1990s and in 2001. He repeatedly struck in the area between Utrecht and De Bilt, while his wife and child stayed at home. He chased young women on his mountain bike or scooter, after which he threatened them with a knife, took them away and tied them up with tie-wraps and tape. He raped multiple women, forced them to perform oral sex and made more attempts. The police went undercover, followed up thousands of tips and asked almost 300 men to voluntarily provide DNA, but managed to keep Tuns out of the hands of the justice system for years. It was only when he was convicted in Nieuwegein in 2014 for stealing a decoy bike that a match was made with the DNA profile. He was already on the radar of the police in the 1990s, but refused to provide DNA at the time. Gerard T. was sentenced to 16 years in prison in 2017 on appeal for four of the rapes. The Public Prosecution Service suspected him of another eighteen sexual offences, but had insufficient evidence to prosecute him for these. The 61-year-old T. will be eligible for early release on conditions on 14 March. He will then have served two-thirds of his sentence. According to the Public Prosecution Service, T. should first be treated in a secure clinic before he can gradually return to society and therefore argued in court to postpone his release by six months. Experts have judged that T. cannot yet stand on his own two feet due to his psychological problems, his addiction and problems with tension. T. said that he wants to cooperate with treatment and admission. T. says he cannot remember anything about the four violent rapes, but said in court that he takes responsibility for them. He said he was heavily addicted to cocaine during that period. “I really don’t know what happened,” he said. “I used an awful lot during that time.” T. goes to meetings of the AA (Alcoholics Anonymous) because of his addiction and followed long-term therapy in prison. “I wake up with it and I go to bed with it. I know for sure that I have done something very wrong and that this should not happen again,” said T. Several victims followed the hearing online in another room. “It is important for them to know how that early release is structured. We have to create certainty, so that Tuns can eventually return to society step by step, because the sentence is finite,” said the officer. The court will give its verdict in March.
Andrew and Tristan Tate
Andrew Tate is due to appear in court in the United Kingdom next year. Four women are accusing him of assault and sexual abuse. This is a civil case, but there is also a criminal case against Tate in the United Kingdom. According to lawyers, one of the women was allegedly threatened with a firearm by the former kickboxer. Another woman accuses the influencer of choking her during sex until she was unconscious. The identities of the four have not been released. A court in London ruled on Wednesday that the case will start in June 2026. The hearing was actually scheduled for 2027, but the court found that too late. The British Public Prosecution Service has announced that a total of 21 charges are pending against the brothers. The accusations include rape, causing bodily harm and human trafficking.
A woman from the United States has also sued brothers Andrew and Tristan Tate, alleging that they forced her to perform sex work. She accuses the brothers of luring her to Romania and defaming her after she gave a statement to Romanian authorities. It is the first lawsuit filed against the brothers in the United States. The two have been facing several civil and criminal cases in Romania and the United Kingdom. They are accused of forming a criminal organization, human trafficking, indecent exposure to minors and money laundering, among other things. The identity of the woman, and of her parents, has not been released for security reasons. In 2023, the brothers sued her for defamation. According to American media, the case filed by the woman alleged that the two tried to bully and harass her through the defamation lawsuit. Andrew and Tristan Tate are international internet phenomena. Andrew in particular is known for his misogynistic statements that reached an audience of millions. The former kickboxer has explicitly called himself a woman hater in the past. According to the influencer, “real men” are strong, rich and keep their wives under their thumb. He states, among other things, that “women are the property of men” and that “women who put themselves in a position to be raped are partly responsible for it themselves”.
Tate was banned from several social media channels. His account was also blocked on the former Twitter, but after Musk bought the platform, Tate was allowed to return. The brothers were arrested several times in Romania, where they have lived for years. Last year, Andrew was released from his cell, but he remained under house arrest . Last month, that house arrest was also lifted and he was allowed to move freely in Romania again. He is not allowed to leave the country because a case against him and his brother is still pending. Tate was banned from several social media channels. His account was also blocked on Twitter, but after Musk bought the platform, Tate was allowed to return. In February 2025, the Tate brothers left Romania and flew to the US on a private plane. Despite these pending cases, the Romanian prosecutor gave permission for unclear reasons. The brothers are fervent Trump supporters. Earlier this month, the newspaper The Financial Times already wrote that the US had put pressure on Romania to give the brothers their passports back.
The Attorney General of the US state of Florida has announced a criminal investigation into brothers Andrew and Tristan Tate. The influencers have been in Florida for a week, after having previously been detained in Romania. The Tate brothers were linked to human trafficking, forming a criminal organization, sex with a minor and money laundering in the Eastern European country. Influencer Andrew Tate, together with his brother, turned himself in to the Romanian police on Monday. Romania is investigating the right-wing radical influencers. They are suspected of human trafficking, forming a criminal organization, sex with a minor and money laundering. The Tate brothers maintain their innocence.
Overview of ongoing legal cases against the brothers:
Romania (Criminal Case):
Charges: The brothers are charged with forming a criminal organization, human trafficking, indecent exposure to minors and money laundering, and are alleged to have been involved in the commercial sexual exploitation of women in Romania and other countries, including the United States and the United Kingdom.
The trial was postponed after a Romanian court in December 2024 found “irregularities” and procedural flaws in the case file. The case has been sent back to prosecutors to review the investigation and possibly provide new evidence. The brothers, along with two Romanian women, were accused of being part of a criminal organization. Romanian prosecutors said in January last year that they had seized 15 cars and more than 10 homes, as well as other assets such as designer watches, to prevent them from being sold or hidden. The Romanian court has also reversed that decision, meaning the trial is on hold until the case file is corrected.
United Kingdom (Criminal Case):
Charges: In May 2025, it was announced that Andrew and Tristan Tate face a total of 21 charges in the UK, including rape, causing actual bodily harm and human trafficking. These charges relate to events between 2012 and 2015.
Extradition: The UK Crown Prosecution Service has submitted an extradition request to Romania. Romania has agreed to the extradition, but this cannot take place until the trial in Romania has been concluded.
United Kingdom (Civil Case):
Charges: An American woman filed a civil lawsuit against the Tate brothers in February 2025, alleging she was forced into sex work by them after being lured to Romania.
Brothers Andrew and Tristan Tate had left Romania for the United States for a period of time. They returned to Romania in March 2025. Romanian authorities expect them to remain in the country for the ongoing legal proceedings, although they are now free to move around Romania and are no longer under house arrest.
Harvey Weinstein
Harvey Weinstein (73) was found guilty of sexual abuse by a jury on June 11, 2025. This is a case that had to be retried after his conviction from 2020 was overturned last year. The jury found the sexual assault of Haley proven, but not that of Sokola. No verdict has yet been reached on the third charge. Weinstein has been accused of misconduct by dozens of women. The former film producer has always denied the allegations. Although his conviction was overturned, Weinstein is still in prison because he was sentenced to sixteen years in prison in 2022 in another rape case. Weinstein has appealed in that case. Harvey Weinstein had to appear in court on April 15, 2025 for a case in which he was previously convicted. An earlier verdict was overturned because the judge ruled that the trial had not been fair. Weinstein was sentenced to 23 years in prison in 2020 in the case, which revolves around the rape and sexual assault of two women. But the verdict was overturned in 2024, after the New York Court of Appeals ruled that the district court had made “serious errors.” The court had admitted testimony from alleged victims about crimes for which Weinstein was not on trial. In the retrial, another charge was added, namely the sexual assault of then 16-year-old Kaja Sokola in 2002. The former film producer’s past behavior would have contributed to his conviction in this case, and that is not allowed. The vote was 4-3 in favor of overturning the conviction on the grounds of an unfair trial. That means the case had to be tried again. Weinstein begged the judge to move the trial forward. He does not expect to make it to the scheduled trial on April 15 and therefore requested a hearing on April 7. “I’m not going to stand it. I’m begging you to reschedule,” said the former film producer, who called every day in jail “a struggle.” The former film producer is currently in prison, having been sentenced to 16 years in prison for rape in a previous trial. Weinstein has already undergone multiple medical treatments at Rikers Island, New York’s largest prison. Last year, he was treated for leukemia and underwent emergency heart surgery. Weinstein also has multiple medical conditions, including diabetes. In late 2024, his lawyers filed a lawsuit against the City of New York, alleging a lack of medical care and poor hygiene in the prison where he is serving his sentence. Weinstein has been accused of sexual misconduct, assault and rape by dozens of women, including well-known actresses. His prosecution was seen as a milestone for the MeToo movement.Mid-April 2025 Last week, the trial in which Weinstein is accused of rape and sexual assault started again in New York. He will be allowed to stay in a hospital during the upcoming criminal trial against him. This was decided by an American judge after Weinstein’s legal team requested this. He has been transferred from a prison to a hospital in New York. According to the team, the 73-year-old did not receive adequate health care in prison. Weinstein is said to be suffering from many medical problems, such as cancer, diabetes, chest pain, sleep apnea, thyroid problems, obesity, anemia and high blood pressure. The treatment of one of the other charges has been declared null and void because a juror withdrew. The trial must therefore be partly restarted. The charge revolves around the accusation of hairstylist actress Jessica Mann in 2013. She says that the now 73-year-old Weinstein raped her in a hotel room. The juror who now no longer wants to continue says that other jurors threatened him. According to him, he was pressured to change his verdict. It is not known what his verdict was. Other jurors contradict his story. One of them denies that the man was threatened. Another says that the conversations became heated, but that they were always respectful. Last Friday there were already reports of tensions within the jury. In the current case, Weinstein was tried on three charges; two counts of sexual assault and one of rape. Yesterday, the jury found the former film producer guilty of sexually assaulting production assistant Miriam Haley in 2006 when she was 16 years old. In the other charge, that of Kaja Sokola, the jury found Weinstein not guilty. Sokola accused Weinstein of sexually assaulting her in 2002. Following Mann’s accusation, Weinstein was already sentenced to 23 years in prison in 2020. That verdict was overturned last year because the judges found that the film producer had not had a fair trial. Prosecutors have therefore started the case again. Weinstein is due to appear in court again on July 2. He could face up to 25 years in prison if found guilty.The case revolves around the accusation by hairstylist actress Jessica Mann in 2013. She claims that the now 73-year-old Weinstein raped her in a hotel room. The juror who is now recusing himself says that other jurors threatened him. He says he was pressured to change his verdict. It is not known what his verdict was. Other jurors dispute his story. One of them denies that the man was threatened. Another says that the conversations became heated, but that they were always respectful. There were already reports of tensions within the jury last Friday. In the current case, Weinstein was tried on three counts; two counts of sexual assault and one of rape. Yesterday, the jury found the former film producer guilty of sexually assaulting production assistant Miriam Haley in 2006 when she was 16. On the other count, that of Kaja Sokola, the jury found Weinstein not guilty. Sokola accused Weinstein of sexually assaulting her in 2002. Following Mann’s complaint, Weinstein was sentenced to 23 years in prison in 2020. That sentence was overturned last year because judges found the film producer had not received a fair trial. Prosecutors have therefore reopened the case. Weinstein is due back in court on July 2. He could face up to 25 years in prison if found guilty.The case revolves around the accusation by hairstylist actress Jessica Mann in 2013. She claims that the now 73-year-old Weinstein raped her in a hotel room. The juror who is now recusing himself says that other jurors threatened him. He says he was pressured to change his verdict. It is not known what his verdict was. Other jurors dispute his story. One of them denies that the man was threatened. Another says that the conversations became heated, but that they were always respectful. There were already reports of tensions within the jury last Friday. In the current case, Weinstein was tried on three counts; two counts of sexual assault and one of rape. Yesterday, the jury found the former film producer guilty of sexually assaulting production assistant Miriam Haley in 2006 when she was 16. On the other count, that of Kaja Sokola, the jury found Weinstein not guilty. Sokola accused Weinstein of sexually assaulting her in 2002. Following Mann’s complaint, Weinstein was sentenced to 23 years in prison in 2020. That sentence was overturned last year because judges found the film producer had not received a fair trial. Prosecutors have therefore reopened the case. Weinstein is due back in court on July 2. He could face up to 25 years in prison if found guilty.
Phuoc-Vinh Tran and Joël le Scouarnec
A 74-year-old gynecologist in France is suspected of sexually assaulting and raping 92 patients, aged 18 to 52. This happened between 2005 and 2014. The case came to light in 2013 when a woman went to the police. She said that gynecologist Phuoc-Vinh Tran had inappropriately touched her during a consultation. She filed a complaint. The woman also told her family doctor, who said that more women had complained about the gynecologist. More allegations came to light during the police investigation. In total, around 130 women filed complaints. Some facts turned out to be time-barred and for others there was insufficient evidence. The justice department now believes it has evidence for 92 women. The Public Prosecution Service believes that they are the victims of, in total, 79 rapes and 16 cases of sexual violence. The gynecologist, who is now 74 years old, worked in Domont, north of Paris. According to him, in all cases it was about ‘medical procedures’ that he performed on the women. However, the indictment states what the man did, including repetitive penetration with his fingers and caressing in unnecessary places, ‘with the aim of sexually stimulating the women. France is currently being shocked by a whole series of, often major, indecency and morality scandals.
At the end of February 2025, the trial of Joël le Scouarnec, a French surgeon (73), also started. He sexually abused 299 children in 25 years, while his family and superiors knew that he was a pedophile and had previously been convicted of possession of child pornography. The former French surgeon is the biggest serial rapist in France and abused children, sometimes under anesthesia. After a years-long police investigation, he stood trial in Vannes and was sentenced to 20 years in prison. The surgeon also considers himself responsible for the later deaths of two victims who died by suicide and an overdose, Le Monde reports. Le S. said earlier in court that he did not deserve any leniency. Since the start of the trial, on February 24, the convicted man stated that he remembered little of his crimes. In March, he confessed to all charges and even confessed to assaults that were not yet known. Some 300,000 images of child abuse were found in the former surgeon’s house. In addition, there were diaries in which he had recorded the abuse of children and animals. In them he wrote that he was “very happy” that he was a “pedophile”. The average age of the victims was eleven years old. Le S. was already sentenced to a suspended prison sentence in 2005 for possession of images showing child abuse. After that, he was able to continue raping and abusing children unhindered, the judiciary stated. Between 1989 and 2014, he abused 158 boys and 141 girls, including 111 cases of rape and 189 of sexual assault. The majority were once his patients and were abused by him in the hospitals where he worked. Sometimes while they were still half-anaesthetised after an operation. Sometimes under the guise of ‘medical treatment’. So the victims did not notice anything or thought that the doctor was ‘just’ examining them. One of the questions that is expected to play a role during the case: to what extent was Le Scouarnec protected by his colleagues? For example, after the FBI warned French authorities that he was visiting child abuse websites, he was only suspended. It is also said that family members knew about his pedophilia but failed to stop him. About four years ago, the doctor was already on trial for another series of abuse cases: that of his neighbor girl, of two nieces and of a 4-year-old patient. During the investigation, it became clear that there were more victims. This emerged from diaries found, in which Le Scouarnec kept meticulous records. They contain texts such as: ‘I expose her lower body and pretend to do an examination.’ During a police interrogation, victims heard excerpts from those diaries, in which he wrote what he did to them. This applies, for example, to Marie and Amélie, who are now both around forty. Amélie did not want to know all the details, she said in 2020. ,,It feels like you’ve stepped into a horror movie.” Marie said: “He describes how I was lying naked on a bed when I was 10 years old. He describes my body and the urges he feels. And he describes how he penetrates me (with fingers). The two women initially had no active memories of the abuse by Le Scouarnec. And there are many more like them. Lawyer Francesca Satta, who represents several victims, said that her clients also include ’the family of two men who did remember it and who took their own lives’. Joel Le Scouarnec had hundreds of diaries in which he wrote down his crimes in detail. He also wrote down his age every year on his birthday, followed by: “I am a pedophile and I am proud of it.” In addition to the diaries, the police found 300,000 inappropriate photos and videos of children and 70 child-sized dolls during a house search, some of which were chained up. The average age of his victims was 11, with an almost equal number of boys and girls. Le Scouarnec was finally stopped in 2017 after investigations by several law enforcement agencies and even the FBI. After years of abusing his patients with no consequences, Le Scouarnec thought he was untouchable. His crimes came to light after his 6-year-old neighbor girl told her mother she had been sexually abused by him. The ensuing investigation led to a conviction and prison sentence for raping and sexually assaulting four girls in 2020. Further evidence revealed abuse on a much larger scale. In 2004, the FBI launched a global investigation into the pedophile ring, finding evidence that Le Scouarnec was downloading and sharing pornographic images of children. The FBI alerted French authorities, who in turn arrested the former surgeon. During his trial in 2005, his medical credentials were disregarded and he was given a four-month suspended sentence, allowing him to continue his abuse. One of his victims was a 9-year-old girl. Le Scouarnec was her surgeon and wrote in his diary how he had abused her. abused while she was under anesthesia. Like many victims, she only found out later what had happened to her. “This man has destroyed my life, and that of so many other children. When I heard about other victims, I found the missing piece of the puzzle. I began to make the connection between this and the problems I experience, especially problems with intimacy and relationships with men. The grandparents, Roland and Mauricette, of 10-year-old Mathis Vinet also testified. Their grandson was admitted to hospital under the care of Le Scouarnec. That night, he allegedly abused the boy while he was in bed. Mathis, who loved helping his grandfather in the garden, turned into a boy with a drug problem.Mathis started using drugs so when someone suddenly showed up at his door, he thought he was in trouble. After investigators told him what had happened, his world fell apart. He had flashbacks and called us the next day to say he was having a hard time.” In 2021, Mathis committed suicide at the age of 24.
Jan in ’t Veld
Jan in ’t Veld (73) has been convicted of child abuse and possession of child pornography in Kenya. He was convicted of ten charges, including sexual abuse of minors, distributing child pornography and sexting. The court in Nairobi ruled that he had been guilty of transgressive behavior towards vulnerable children for years. On November 23, 2023, he was arrested at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi when he tried to flee to the Netherlands. Incriminating images and messages were found on his electronic devices, which led to his eventual conviction. Jan abused his influence as a philanthropist and sought out single mothers in need of financial support in order to gain access to their children . Kenyans he visits call him “Teacher Jan”. The ten-dollar, adjustable-strength glasses that his foundation Focus in Vision provided thanks to sponsors are worn by hundreds of thousands of people living in areas where glasses are hard to come by. In 2003, his stepson designed adjustable-strength glasses for his graduation project, and In ’t Veld distributed them all over the world, giving him access to underprivileged families. About four times a year, he himself flies to Tanzania and Kenya. Victims described how he touched them inappropriately, exposed them to pornographic material and forced them into sexual conversations via social media. Digital forensic experts presented explicit WhatsApp conversations between the suspect and a 17-year-old boy, in which he encouraged the minor to engage in sexual acts. According to the judge, he sexually manipulated and abused vulnerable children, in a systematic manner, under the pretext of charity work”. The Public Prosecution Service showed shocking images and videos found on his phone, which showed sexual abuse of children. It was also established that the suspect was staying in Kenya without a valid visa and had traveled to more than a hundred countries in the past. During the trial, Jan in ’t V. tried to justify his actions by claiming that the legal age of consent in Kenya is ‘unreasonably high’. He even referred to biblical texts to legitimize his actions, which led to strong criticism from both the Public Prosecution Service and the judge. His defense was rejected, and the judge pointed out the serious harm he had caused to vulnerable children. Jan was released on bail after paying more than 12,000 euros and is now awaiting his sentence in March 2025. The prosecutors are calling for a long prison sentence, given the seriousness of his crimes and the systematic nature of his offenses.
Gianni de W.
Gianni de W. (25) from Etten leur extorted approximately 171 girls and women with nude photos. Of these, 93 were minors or were at the time of the extortion. At least two girls from Belgium were also victims. The identities of 40 adult and 93 minor victims have now been discovered. A total of sixteen minor victims still need to be approached and informed. Two of these girls live in Belgium, the public prosecutor announced during the pro forma hearing. One of the Belgian girls is also going to file a complaint, she has already been in contact with the Belgian police. The Dutch police have now received 26 complaints, and it is expected that more will follow. 38 victims have not yet been identified. The Dutch courts discovered more than 100,000 images of one of the victims. For example, individual frames were also made from videos. Gianni did not dare to be present in court in Breda himself. However, there were approximately eight victims present, including the girl who was the very first to file a complaint. The judge says that “it is sometimes good for the suspect to experience the media attention once”. “Otherwise we will have him brought in”, you said. Gianni de W. has been in custody since October 11, 2022, but the case only came up for a non-substantive hearing in January. The Dutch public prosecutor then spoke of the “largest investigation into online abuse of minors ever in the Netherlands”. He acted under fake names with the recurring alias Bryan – and then tried to befriend them online in order to blackmail them after a first nude photo. The lives of some victims were completely controlled by Gianni for a while. He made contact with the girls via social media, including Snapchat and Instagram. He started a conversation and offered the girls money to take nude photos and videos. If the girls wanted to stop, he threatened to put the images online. The police found a total of more than 150 folders with different girls’ names on his computer. Some of them sometimes contained thousands of images of a victim. The impact of the sextortion on the victims is enormous. Some girls were severely mentally damaged by it,” the public prosecutor concluded earlier based on the reports. Gianni also seduced nine of his good friends in real life to send nude photos using fake names. In addition, the suspect is said to have asked one of his victims to have sex with her boyfriend and to film it for him. A large amount of child pornography was also found on the computer of the man from Etten-Leur. He was sentenced to 6.5 years in prison and TBS with conditions for forcing nude photos and videos of dozens of underage girls and making child pornography. The sentence was lower than demanded. The demand was seven years in prison and TBS with compulsory treatment.But the judge found the slightly milder TBS with conditions (where you are not locked up, but come to the clinic yourself) more appropriate because Gianni de W. acknowledges that he needs help. The prison sentence is a combination of five years in prison according to adult criminal law and eighteen months of juvenile detention (because De W. committed a number of acts when he was a minor).
Anthony Weiner
Former US Congressman Anthony Weiner, convicted of sexting, was released three months early for good behavior. He was transferred from prison in Massachusetts to a rehabilitation center in New York in 2019. The Democrat was sentenced to 21 months in prison in 2017 for sending sexually suggestive messages to a 15-year-old girl. Even though he knew she was a minor, he asked her, among other things, if she could masturbate on camera. He also explicitly described what he would do to her when she was 18. The uproar cost Weiner his seat in the House of Representatives for the Democrats. He also lost his candidacy for mayor of New York City. The Weiner case also meant a major setback for Hillary Clinton. Weiner’s wife, Huma Abedin, was a close associate of the former presidential candidate. During the investigation into Weiner’s escapades, a laptop was seized, which also contained Clinton’s emails. This prompted the FBI to reopen its long-running investigation into Clinton’s emails just before the presidential election. Anthony Weiner is now trying to make a political comeback. Weiner, 60, who has been blamed by some for Hillary Clinton’s defeat in the 2016 presidential election, has announced his candidacy for New York City Council. A powerful player in Brooklyn politics who now serves on the state’s electoral board organized a fundraiser for Anthony Weiner’s campaign for City Council. Frank Seddio, the former Democratic leader of Kings County, sent out invitations to a March 10 breakfast fundraiser at Junior’s for Weiner, who is running to represent parts of Lower Manhattan. Weiner previously represented southern Brooklyn as a city councilman and U.S. representative before his career foundered. “Anthony is a longtime friend who will be a great counselor,” Seddio’s invitation reads. “If elected, he will be an outstanding public servant. Please help us help him once again be a credit to the people of NYC.” Susan Lerner, head of the good-government organization Common Cause New York, said Seddio’s decision to hold a fundraiser underscores why politics must be removed from the Board of Elections and that the agency must become a professional, nonpartisan organization. Seddio, who was appointed to his role at the Board of Elections in January, said he only sent an email. He said the Weiner campaign organized the fundraiser. “There is no prohibition on a Board of Elections commissioner endorsing the candidate, although I am only doing him a favor by sending out the flyer about it. But there is no prohibition,” Seddio said. Weiner described Seddio as “a longtime friend.“Weiner said he strictly adhered to the rules governing the city’s campaign finance system.
The Lev Tahor Sect
The Lev Tahor sect – which means “pure heart” in Hebrew – was founded in the 1980s and practices an ultra-orthodox form of Judaism in which women wear black robes that cover them from head to toe. The community is mainly spread across Guatemala, the United States and Canada and is believed to consist of about 50 families. The sect in Guatemala is suspected of sexual violence against minors. A home belonging to Lev Tahor in Oratorio, about 60 kilometres southeast of Guatemala City, was raided on suspicions of human trafficking “in the form of forced pregnancies, child abuse and rape.” The search also turned up the suspected remains of a minor. The sect has run into legal trouble in several countries. In 2022, Mexican authorities arrested a leader of the sect near the Guatemalan border and removed several women and children from their camp. In 2021, two leaders of the group were convicted of kidnapping and sexual exploitation of children in New York. They allegedly abducted two children from their mother in order to return a 14-year-old girl to an illicit sexual relationship with an adult man.
Children search
In the past three years, 51,433 children have disappeared from asylum seekers’ centres in Europe . This is evident from research by the journalist collective Lost in Europe in collaboration with the Belgian media VRT, Knack and De Standaard. The whereabouts of these minors is unknown. These are children who travelled to Europe unaccompanied and reported to an asylum seekers’ centre in a member state. They were registered as missing there after their disappearance. These are usually children between the ages of 12 and 18, but very young children also get ‘lost’. The number of over 50,000 is more than double compared to the three years before. In the period from 2018 to 2020, 18,292 disappearances were registered. In recent years, the researchers have seen a significant increase in children coming from Afghanistan, where the Taliban have been in power again since 2021. In addition, Austria now has more insight into the figures, and the numbers there are also considerable.
Pedophile network
Germany has been confronted with major abuse cases several times in the past year. A man lived on a campsite in Lügde who – with the help of accomplices – abused more than thirty children over a period of ten years. A pedophile network was recently exposed in an allotment complex in Münster, with at least three victims and eleven suspects. And the police announced that they suspect the German Christian B. of having kidnapped and murdered the British girl Madeleine McCann.
Pedo website
A 44-year-old man from the municipality of Halderberge has been arrested because he managed a website with child pornography. He is also said to have shared punishable images on the website himself. He was arrested by the Child Pornography and Child Sex Tourism Team (TBKK) of the National Investigation and Intervention Unit (LO). On the inaccessible website ‘boywankers’, users shared punishable images of boys between the ages of 10 and 18. Presumably, underage boys were deceived into performing sexual acts with themselves or with other boys. These acts were then recorded with webcams and shared by users of the website. The police are investigating who the victims, users and administrators of the website are. Two reports have been filed, including the parents of a 12-year-old victim. The Justice Department believes that the administrators of the site have earned a lot of money. Users could gain access to a protected section with crypto money. There were more than 2,500 user accounts. Therefore, the suspect’s crypto assets, cash and house have been seized.
Pedophilia via Telegram
At the end of January 2024, a 57-year-old man from Zoetermeer was arrested for sharing violent images of extreme child sexual abuse via Telegram. The investigation into the contents of the man’s phone showed that he is a member of dozens of extreme Telegram groups. He was also the administrator of a number of these groups, the Public Prosecution Service announced . The groups have dozens to as many as 1,500 members. In addition to child pornography, legions of violent videos of, among other things, beheadings were also found in the groups.
Pedophile teacher
For years, a primary school and tennis teacher from Pijnacker deliberately sought contact with young girls, while he knew that he felt sexually attracted to them. He also deliberately turned on the computer in the morning, so that new child pornography had been downloaded by the time he got home from school in the afternoon. Today, the 62-year-old man from Pijnacker appeared in court for indecent acts with six girls and possession of large amounts of child pornography. The case came to light when one of the victims found the courage to go to the police.
Pedophiles and bestiality
On July 5, 2024, the Public Prosecution Service (OM) demanded prison sentences of 3 years and 18 months and TBS with compulsory treatment against two men suspected of sexually abusing one minor and possessing child and animal pornography. One of the men is also suspected of sexually abusing two other minors, of producing and distributing child pornography, and of indecent acts with a dog and a pig. One of the suspects, a 25-year-old man from the municipality of Schagen, had been offering himself as a babysitter via Marktplaats since 2019 and has looked after young children at various addresses in the country in this way. The man showed himself in photos wearing a law enforcement uniform. He abused at least one child, who was 1 year old at the time. He made recordings of the abuse of this child. He shared these recordings with the co-suspect, an acquaintance of his. This co-suspect was present at the abuse from a distance (via a mobile phone) and gave the 25-year-old man instructions and orders. The Public Prosecution Service has requested acquittal for the abuse of the two other children. Not because the Public Prosecution Service believes that no abuse took place, but because there are no witnesses or supporting statements. As a result, the abuse cannot be proven legally and convincingly. The co-suspect, a 39-year-old man from Alkmaar, had contact with the 25-year-old man about the babysitting activities and about the (intended) abuse. In the end, he did not go to the babysitting address and did not commit sexual abuse himself. He did, however, encourage his co-suspect and indicated that he wanted to sexually abuse the young child. The chats between the two suspects about the abuse of the child are very telling in this respect and also very shocking. A large amount of child pornography was also found on the 39-year-old suspect. The man committed some of his crimes while he was still in a TBS programme (with conditions). He misled the probation service by, for example, collecting child pornography on a separate telephone that he hid in his father’s bedroom. The police tracked down the main suspect after a report from a neighbour. She reported that the 25-year-old man stole toys and clothes from her garden and tried to contact her 9-year-old son. The man’s behaviour gave her a very bad feeling. This report probably ensured that the abuse was limited to the facts for which the men appeared in court today and yesterday. The number of victims might have been greater without this report and the rapid intervention of the police and the judiciary. This once again emphasises the importance of reporting suspicious situations. During the police investigation that followed the report, messages were found on the telephone of the 25-year-old suspect that indicated the involvement of the second suspect.Subsequently, a large quantity of child pornography and animal pornography was discovered on both men. The police also found photos of the 25-year-old himself performing sexual acts with animals. He appeared to have approached several farmers and a dog owner with the request to make animals available for sex and to film this, which he did. These cases are being investigated in the regions where the animal abuse took place: Eastern Netherlands and Central Netherlands. There are more cases of animal abuse that are not included in this case, but are being picked up by the authorities in the areas concerned. This could lead to criminal cases with a possible ban on keeping animals, or a warning. The police investigation yielded eleven babysitting addresses in various parts of the country, where the 25-year-old suspect had babysat. The police have contacted all parents who belong to these addresses and informed them about the investigation and the suspicions. No provable facts have emerged from this. It is not certain whether this means that more abuse has not taken place. This is partly because the 25-year-old suspect accidentally reset a phone to factory settings, which caused the contents to be lost, and because the suspect appeared to be looking for children to babysit who could not yet talk. The public prosecutors indicated at the hearing today that the suspects’ methods were sophisticated and calculated. For example, the 25-year-old was ‘crying, seemingly candid during the hearing. But upon closer examination: only about facts that he could not avoid’. According to an expert from the Pieter Baan Centre, it is clear that the man is suffering from disorders, despite the suspect’s ‘massive opposition’ to the investigation: “A lot went wrong with him in many areas and the risk of recidivism is high. TBS with compulsory treatment could be an appropriate punishment”. The Public Prosecution Service wants the 39-year-old suspect to be given TBS again, but with compulsory treatment. This is because during the TBS with conditions he showed that he could not cope with it, by misleading the probation service. A probation expert: “TBS with conditions requires a certain degree of reliability and the suspect has shown himself to be completely unreliable.”or a warning. The police investigation yielded eleven babysitting addresses in various parts of the country, where the 25-year-old suspect had babysat. The police have contacted all parents associated with these addresses and informed them about the investigation and the suspicions. No provable facts emerged from this. It is not certain whether more abuse did not take place. This is partly because the 25-year-old suspect had accidentally reset a telephone to factory settings, which caused the contents to be lost, and because the suspect seemed to be looking for babysitting children who could not yet talk. The public prosecutors indicated at the hearing today that the suspects’ methods were sophisticated and calculated. For example, the 25-year-old was ‘Crying, apparently candid during the hearing. But on closer inspection: only about facts that he could not get away from’. According to an expert from the Pieter Baan Center, it is clear that the man suffers from disorders, despite the suspect’s ‘massive opposition’ to the investigation: “A lot went wrong with him in many areas and the risk of recidivism is high. TBS with compulsory treatment could be an appropriate punishment”. The Public Prosecution Service wants the 39-year-old suspect to receive TBS again, but with compulsory treatment. This is because during the TBS with conditions he showed that he could not cope with it, by misleading the probation service. An expert from the probation service: “TBS with conditions requires a certain reliability and the suspect has shown himself to be completely unreliable”.or a warning. The police investigation yielded eleven babysitting addresses in various parts of the country, where the 25-year-old suspect had babysat. The police have contacted all parents associated with these addresses and informed them about the investigation and the suspicions. No provable facts emerged from this. It is not certain whether more abuse did not take place. This is partly because the 25-year-old suspect had accidentally reset a telephone to factory settings, which caused the contents to be lost, and because the suspect seemed to be looking for babysitting children who could not yet talk. The public prosecutors indicated at the hearing today that the suspects’ methods were sophisticated and calculated. For example, the 25-year-old was ‘Crying, apparently candid during the hearing. But on closer inspection: only about facts that he could not get away from’. According to an expert from the Pieter Baan Center, it is clear that the man suffers from disorders, despite the suspect’s ‘massive opposition’ to the investigation: “A lot went wrong with him in many areas and the risk of recidivism is high. TBS with compulsory treatment could be an appropriate punishment”. The Public Prosecution Service wants the 39-year-old suspect to receive TBS again, but with compulsory treatment. This is because during the TBS with conditions he showed that he could not cope with it, by misleading the probation service. An expert from the probation service: “TBS with conditions requires a certain reliability and the suspect has shown himself to be completely unreliable”.by misleading the probation service. An expert from the probation service: “For TBS with conditions, a certain reliability is required and the suspect has shown himself to be completely unreliable.”by misleading the probation service. An expert from the probation service: “For TBS with conditions, a certain reliability is required and the suspect has shown himself to be completely unreliable.”
Pedophile scout
Hidden cameras were found at two scouting camps in Belgium at the end of July 2024. For example, at a camp in Liège, a hidden camera was discovered in an open-air toilet at the beginning of July. And at a camp in Beringen (Belgian Limburg), one was found in a shower on Friday.
You can report to the organization Stop it Now . There is a telephone helpline: 0800- 266 64 36
Save the Children
Guatemalan prosecutors raid Save the Children offices over alleged child abuse . The raid follows local media reports that Guatemalan prosecutors have asked the Texas Attorney General’s Office for help in investigating the alleged trafficking of Guatemalan children at the southern US border. Guatemalan authorities raided the offices of the international organization Save the Children on Thursday, April 25, 2024, in what prosecutors said was part of an investigation into alleged abuse of minors. The operation was the result of “a transnational investigation. Guatemalan authorities had sought assistance from the U.S. State of Texas Justice Department in investigating the alleged trafficking of Guatemalan children at the southern US border. The prosecutors sent a letter to the Texas Attorney General on April 12, naming Save the Children and several other NGOs under suspicion. According to the report, the organizations were suspected of “participating in a child trafficking operation.”
New Zealanders abused by church and healthcare institutions
New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon officially apologized on November 11, 2024 to the many young and vulnerable people who were abused or mistreated in care facilities for yearsof the government and the church. He was responding to an extensive government report after five years of research. A government commission made more than 130 recommendations in the report. One of these was an apology by the prime minister, but also by the Pope, because some of the abuse took place in Roman Catholic care institutions. Of the 650,000 children and vulnerable adults who were in a New Zealand care institution between 1950 and 2019, almost a third experienced physical, sexual, verbal or psychological abuse. Many more were exploited or neglected, the report says. For almost seventy years, children, young people and people with disabilities in particular were raped, abused and sometimes even sterilized against their will. Children of the indigenous Maori population suffered the worst: more than 80 percent of Maori children in care institutions were abused or mistreated. The abuse and mistreatment were also more severe than that of others, the research shows. The results are a national disgrace, the commission writes. Most of the abused children were between the ages of 5 and 17, but there were also victims as young as nine months old. Some 2,300 victims were interviewed by the parliamentary inquiry, after years of complaints from victims. In addition to apologies from both the New Zealand Prime Minister and the Pope and the religious head of the Anglican Church, the Archbishop of Canterbury, the commission made other recommendations. For example, the New Zealand police should set up a special unit for abuse and mistreatment in care institutions. The commission also advocates monetary compensation for the victims. The commission does not say how much, but the report gives an estimate of what the abuse and mistreatment cost a victim on average: about 857,000 New Zealand dollars, almost half a million euros. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon promised change and expressed his regret for “this dark day in New Zealand’s history”. An official apology will follow on November 12, he said. The Catholic Church of New Zealand also acknowledged the abuse and mistreatment: “We guarantee that we will take action”. The Anglican Church of New Zealand added that it “takes full responsibility for our failure to provide the safe and caring environment to which those in our care were entitled”. “This report has had a huge impact in New Zealand, particularly among the thousands of victims who have not been heard for years. The scale of the scandal has become increasingly known in recent years. The final report has been long awaited, with several delays as more victims came forward.According to experts, the abuse is not over yet, young people in care institutions are still confronted with this. Official apologies, a plan to deal with it and a compensation scheme are the most important first steps, but for many victims it comes too late. A large number of them have committed suicide.” During a visit to Belgium, Pope Francis repeatedly apologized for years of abuse by priests and spoke about a financial settlement for the victims. During his visit, Belgian police arrested a 67-year-old pastor for his involvement in the death of another pastor. The English pastor was visiting a colleague in the Belgian town of Kalmthout, just across the border from Roosendaal, because of the pope’s visit. The Belgian pastor is suspected of trafficking in narcotics resulting in death. Traces of amphetamine and MDMA were found in a urine test. The suspect will remain in custody until an autopsy of the deceased English pastor provides more clarity about the cause of death. Luxon also announced that November 12 should be a national day of remembrance and that “proven perpetrators” will be removed from, for example, street signs. In addition to the prime minister, others also apologized. These include the Ministry of Social Development, the police and health services. In some cases, they were booed by the audience, reports The New Zealand Herald . Many victims feel that the apologies come too late and that they mean little without a concrete compensation scheme.
Operation Chalice
For “ Operation Chalice ”, an abuse case from 2010, there will be no trial after 15 years of investigation because prosecution of the 68 suspects would not be possible for various reasons. 37 of the perpetrators have since died, four have already been convicted and in the 27 other cases the facts have expired. On 21 January, the last session of the parliamentary inquiry committee into Operation Chalice took place behind closed doors. The nephew of Archbishop Roger Vangheluwe announced at the time that he had been sexually abused by his uncle. Archbishop Vangheluwe made a confession and resigned as Bishop. There were searches in the St. Rumbold’s Cathedral in Mechelen, in private homes of the then Cardinal Danneels and other suspects and even in the Archbishop’s Palace in Mechelen. Files were seized that were later declared null and void for the investigation because they had been seized wrongfully. The case quickly grew and eventually 68 suspects and 475 victims came into the picture. With the decision to drop the abuse case, the court is following the wishes of the Public Prosecution Service. The Public Prosecution Service had already announced that it did not want to prosecute anyone, partly because the facts had now expired. Victims reacted emotionally to the decision: “I am desperate. I no longer have any confidence, not in the church, not in justice,” says one of the victims: “I had at least hoped that there would be recognition.” Lawyer Christine Mussche, who represents many victims, speaks of a “handicapped file”. She points out that over the years, many pieces of evidence have been removed from the file due to doubts about the legality of the house searches. According to Mussche, at least two-thirds of the file was missing as a result. She is still considering an appeal. In a statementthe Belgian bishops say that they “first and foremost reiterate their sympathy for the suffering that the victims of sexual abuse in the Church have endured. Perpetrators must be prosecuted and judged according to the rules of the rule of law”. They emphasize that the Catholic Church also takes responsibility when the facts are time-barred. The case has dragged on for years. At the end of 2015, the Public Prosecution Service first tried to bring the case before the court, but then the victims requested additional investigation. The Supreme Court found no formal evidence of a “cover-up”, but did find strife among magistrates, dysfunctions in the procedure and indications of pressure. The competent Joint Advisory and Investigation Committee (VAOC) of the High Council of Justice started the investigation following the criticism in the TV documentary ‘Godvergeten’. The special investigation, which lasted six months and started on October 5, 2023, revolved around five research questions, determined by the Joint Advisory and Investigation Committee (VAOC) of the High Council of Justice. In order to conduct the investigation, the High Council of Justice used the possibility to consult current judicial files, which has been possible since 1 January 2020. The High Council of Justice analysed the 104 covers of the investigation file, with at least 500 pages per cover, and questioned 35 people, mainly magistrates, lawyers and police investigators. In short, the controversy in the judicial investigation “Kelk” concerns the broad or limited scope of the investigating judge’s remit when he decided in 2010 to carry out various house searches, including in the archbishop’s palace in Mechelen, and to seize many documents during the house searches. Archive boxes thrown out of the window at the truck are the best-known image of these house searches. This was followed by a procedural battle over the annulment of the house searches and the possible return of seized documents to the church. The victims are repeatedly not summoned as civil parties, which means that they are not aware of judgments and that they are also unable to defend their point of view at the hearing. For the hearings and judgments from 2010, the refusal to allow a debate on the adversarial nature of the procedure in the presence of a lawyer for the victims had no effect on the further procedure, except for a limited delay. This is different for the hearing of 18 March 2014, which led to the judgment of the Indictment Chamber of 20 March 2014. Because the civil parties were not summoned, neither for the hearing of 18 March nor for that of 20 March 2014, they were unaware and could not appeal against the decision to return documents. This is a dysfunction.
The High Council of Justice also established during the special investigation that the sessions of 18 and 20 March 2014 were chaired by a magistrate who had previously been challenged in this case. The High Council of Justice also established that the federal public prosecutor should have known that the magistrate had been challenged in this case. The federal public prosecutor could therefore have lodged an objection to the presence of this magistrate. Both the sitting and the lack of objection are a dysfunction.
Other dysfunctions include the long duration of the investigation, the failure to respond to letters from a lawyer of victims in a timely manner and the partnership between the clerk of the investigating judge and the public prosecutor.
The High Council of Justice determined that not everything went as it should or should have been expected. In total, the High Council of Justice identified nine dysfunctions, for which the High Council formulated seventeen recommendations. In order to address the dysfunctions, the High Council of Justice proposes, among other things, to include requests for disqualification and the disqualification itself of magistrates in the criminal file and to always inform the magistrate in charge (the chief of police). During its work, the High Council of Justice determined that the high tension in the case may have caused pressure or at least the perception thereof, not only from the church, and that religious convictions may have played a role. Based on the elements at its disposal, the High Council of Justice concludes that there are indications of pressure, but no formal evidence. No magistrate or detective heard by the High Council of Justice stated during the investigation that they had been personally put under pressure by representatives of the church. The High Council of Justice concludes on the basis of the elements on which it was able to base its investigation that pressure from the Catholic Church can neither be proven nor ruled out. “The Supreme Court found no formal evidence that the court, deliberately, under pressure from the Church, obstructed the procedure or covered up or wanted to cover up matters. However, the Supreme Court did establish that the procedure was complicated by internal disputes between magistrates.” – quote from the report of the special investigation “Kelk” During the special investigation, the High Council of Justice did not have access to the so-called work covers, which included notes and questions between magistrates and the personal notes of magistrates. As regards the public prosecutor’s office of Brussels, these covers were destroyed after ten years in accordance with the archiving policy; as regards the work covers of the public prosecutor of Brussels and the federal prosecutor, permission for full access was not granted. As a result, it was not possible, even after repeated requests, to determine the content of a meeting that came to light during the special investigation. “At the request of Mr. Keuleneer, a meeting took place between him and several members of the Public Prosecutor’s Office in the courthouse in early August 2010. A few days later, the Public Prosecutor’s Office changed its position in the claim it had made on 30 July 2010 with regard to the KI. The HRJ also notes that the editors of the claim of 30 July 2010 were not the same as the editor of the claim of 12 August 2010. The Supreme Court of Justice also criticizes the lengthy course of the procedure. Until 1 September 2014,the date of the first order to communicate the file by the investigating judge to the federal public prosecutor for the purpose of drawing up a final claim, it appears that a lot of work has been done and has happened in the extensive and complex file. However, from then on it appears that little has happened in certain periods, without a convincing explanation for this. The High Council of Justice calls this long duration a dysfunction in its report. The Joint Advisory and Investigation Committee charged with the special investigation “Kelk” has worked as quickly as possible, but without sacrificing thoroughness and completeness. Analysis of the complete and complex investigation file and the subsequent interrogations have been given the space that was necessary.
Pedophile network in Telford England
Since 1989, more than 1,000 children in the British town of Telford have been sexually abused in the past few decades because police and local authorities failed to intervene and investigate the perpetrators. The children were humiliated, shared and trafficked. Telford is a town of around 140,000 people, just north-west of Birmingham. The investigation followed reporting in the Sunday Mirror newspaper in 2018 on older reports of sexual exploitation. It has since been established that the abuse was allowed to continue because the children, not the perpetrators, were blamed. Teachers and youth workers were discouraged from reporting child sexual abuse. Police feared that investigating some of the Asian men who were abusing them would fuel racial tensions in society. Victims told the investigation that adult men tried to gain the trust of children before ‘ruthlessly betraying that trust by treating them as sexual objects or commodities’. The Sunday Mirror reportedFour years ago, Telford reported that hundreds of girls had been drugged, abused and mistreated since the 1980s. According to a commission of inquiry, the exploitation of the often young girls was not sufficiently investigated because of “nervousness about race”. The authorities were afraid that an investigation into the Asian suspects would lead to “racial tensions”. Commission chairman Crowther speaks of “terrible suffering of generations of children”. According to him, several victims have told the commission how adult men first tried to gain their trust, which was then “ruthlessly” violated. The men targeted vulnerable children, for whom they bought food, alcohol or cigarettes, for example. They often tried to get the girl in question to become their “girlfriend”. In return for the gifts, they then made the children perform sexual acts, the report says. Some girls became pregnant after being raped, the commission says. Many victims and their families also received death threats if they tried to stop the abuse. The report mentions the case of a 16-year-old girl. She became pregnant by taxi driver Azhar Ali Mehmood when she was 14. Two years later, Mehmood set fire to the girl’s house, her sister and her mother. All three died. Mehmood was sentenced to life imprisonment in 2001. The commission made dozens of recommendations to prevent an abuse scandal like this in the future. For example, a ‘whistleblower line’ should be set up to allow information to be passed on anonymously. The commission also recommends that organisations involved work together better and share information. The investigation shows that this has not happened sufficiently. In response to the report, West Mercia Police has “unequivocally” apologised for the events of the past. Chief Constable Richard Cooper says he wants to say sorry to all the victims. “Our actions fell far short of the help and protection you should have received from us. It was unacceptable, we have let you down.” According to Cooper, the police now have teams dedicated to preventing and tackling child exploitation.
Child abuse at Notre-Dame de Bétharram school
In France, the justice system includes the Notre-Dame de Bétharram school.jn 112 reports have been received from former students who say they were victims of physical and sexual violence at the It concerns a Catholic educational institution in the southern French Pyrenees. More than 70 people have filed an official complaint. Most of the violence is said to have been committed between the 1950s and the 2010s. Almost all victims were boys, aged 8 to 13. The alleged perpetrators are both clergy and non-believers who worked at the school. The complaints have been investigated by the judiciary since last year. In 1996, a first complaint was filed for assault. The perpetrator, a school employee, was convicted at the time. The current Prime Minister Bayrou (73) took office in mid-December 2024 and was then Minister of Education (1993-1997). In 1998, the school director was charged with raping a student; the man then committed suicide. Bayrou was no longer a minister at the time, but he was a regional administrator. This made him partly responsible for education in the region where the Bétharram school was located. French media reported that Bayrou was aware of the abuses, but never did anything about it. His own children attended the school and his wife worked there, and the school is located near his home and in his constituency. Bayrou denied it: “I was never informed of the facts, the accusations or the charges,” Bayrou said in parliament this week, in response to questions from the opposition. He dismissed the case as “a fuss about non-existent facts.” But the French press is constantly showing evidence that Bayrou had known for a long time what was going on. An investigating judge has said that Bayrou personally visited him in 1998 to discuss the allegations. “I don’t understand why he now says that he didn’t,” the judge said. Newspaper articles from the 1990s show that Bayrou visited the school as a minister and also answered questions from journalists about the abuse. He said at the time that he had made inquiries into the allegations and according to him, there was nothing wrong. The extent of the physical and sexual violence at the school only became clear after a collective of former students who say they were victims was set up in 2023. It also emerged then that the abuse had started in the 1950s and was still happening recently. Last year, a school employee was suspended against whom eight charges had been filed for violence, rape and sexual violence. This week, activists demonstrated at the school against paedophile crime. Banners read slogans such as ’50 years of denial’ and ‘Bayrou liar’. Bayrou called the collective of victims. “It was an honest conversation but for us it was a bit like putting mustard after the horse has bolted,” said chairman Alain Esquerre. “I told him that I don’t expect a prime minister to say that none of it is true.I don’t really know why he called. He didn’t promise anything and he didn’t promise anything. Esquerre thinks Bayrou should open up. Covering up and denying could also mean involvement.
Pedophile in the youth village De Glind
Four people filed a complaint against a 67-year-old foster father who worked in the youth village De Glind. The victims were abused by him. The Gelderland village was previously in the news because of “large-scale abuse”. “A report was filed at the end of August 2024. The victims are three women and a man and were 5, 6, 7 and 10 years old at the time of the abuse. The latter left the youth village in 1992. The reports are a first concrete step towards a possible lawsuit. In the reports, the victims describe the man as an “aggressive man who came to their bedside in the evening”. The man is said to have groped the foster children. The reports follow earlier news about “large-scale sexual abuse and maltreatment” in the youth village De Glind. Research by Omroep Gelderland revealed in October 2022 that dozens of former foster children had been abused by caregivers in the village. Several people also said they had been sexually abused. The abuse mainly took place between 1984 and 2000, but reports have also been made more recently. After a broadcast of the program In het Vizier van de Jager, new reports came in. Former residents talk about “humiliation”, “being belittled”, “in beaten up” and “dragged down the stairs by the hair”. There is also talk of transgressive behaviour and sexual abuse. De Glind is a village in Gelderland where 120 children who have been placed outside their homes can be accommodated in family homes. The former foster children previously said that there was a “we-know-each-other culture” and that they could not trust anyone. They felt unsafe and unheard.
Biggest morals case in recent years
A 45-year-old Mels van B. from the Molenvliet district in Barendrecht was brought before a first hearing in Rotterdam on 13 December 2024 for very serious sexual abuse with 22 girls between the ages of 10 and 12. He abused a total of eighteen children. Thirteen other children were abused by making videos. It is one of the largest sexual abuse cases in recent years. Van B., an ICT’er, will appear in court on 3 March 2025 in a 2nd profomra case. Van B. gave some children sleeping pills for the abuse. He knew the girls from his own social circle: through the water polo club, his children’s (school) friends and a campsite in Hoeven, North Brabant, where he had a seasonal pitch for his caravan. Ten girls were abused in his caravan. Van B. stayed there regularly. Four girls were abused in his hometown of Barendrecht. Another four girls were abused in both places. The abuse took place between January 2023 and September 2024. Mels van B. is said to have made images of children he abused and also of thirteen other children. During the investigation, the police also found child pornography that the suspect did not make himself. Many families only discovered after his confession that their child could also be one of the victims. They were informed by the police. The examining magistrate has decided that Van B. must be examined at the Pieter Baan Center, so that more insight can be gained into his psyche. The waiting time for this is approximately six months. The substantive hearing will therefore have to wait a while. The next preparatory hearing is on March 3. The man came to the attention of the police and the judiciary after a report was filed against him. The man was arrested on September 10, after he had turned himself in. He is a divorced father of two young children of the same age as his victims. The couple lived in the neighborhood for 14 years. The woman lives nearby and the children also go to school nearby. The couple’s home was defaced and pelted with eggs. There are now 31 known victims. They were drugged, abused and recorded on camera. A girl stayed with Mels van B. in Barendrecht in early September. She woke up in an unpleasant way. The father of her girlfriend was performing sexual acts on her. Shocked, she told her parents at home what had happened to her. They immediately raised the alarm with the Rotterdam police and filed a report. On September 10, Van B. turned himself in to the police. After Mels van B. was arrested on September 10, things moved quickly. Van B. confessed to more and more cases, until the count reached 31. Some girls and boys, some of whom were only six years old, were drugged and abused and filmed. With others, it was only a matter of filming or photographing. The modus operandi was always the same: the suspect used his own children as bait.They brought guests, who were then abused. This happened for years. Morals experts from the Goofy team for child abuse and sexual abuse of the Erasmus MC were deployed in the investigation to assist the police and especially to give advice to the families. Mels will probably be admitted to the Pieter Baan Center at the end of May for examination by behavioral experts. According to his lawyer, Van B. will fully cooperate. The suspect was not present in the courtroom. The families of the children followed the hearing via a video connection from another courtroom. The next preparatory hearing in the case is on May 20. It is not yet known when the first substantive hearing will be. In September, a report was filed, after which he reported to the police and confessed. He has been in pre-trial detention since then.
Pedophile police volunteer
The Central Netherlands police have arrested a police volunteer who is suspected of sexual contact with a minor. The 36-year-old is also suspected of being in possession of child pornography. The man has been suspended. In May, the police received a report about possible sexually suggestive contact between an underage boy and the police volunteer from the Central Netherlands unit. The Public Prosecution Service then instructed the police’s Morals department to conduct further investigation. This department deals with sexual abuse, such as assault, rape and possession of child pornography. The police say that after the report, data carriers, such as a telephone or laptop, were seized for technical examination. After this investigation, the man was arrested and suspended today. The man has been in custody since his arrest on 28 August. The Utrecht resident is a volunteer with the Central Netherlands police unit. He is not only suspected of indecent assault, but also of grooming; a process in which an offender gains the trust of a victim with the aim of sexually abusing that person (online). In addition, he is said to be in possession of child pornography. At this time, three victims aged 14 and 15 are known. The man is said to have approached them via social media. In May, one of the minors reported to the police that he had received sexually suggestive messages from an adult. The man was arrested and his phones were confiscated. Chats with the reporter and other minors were found on them. Child pornography was also found on the device. One of the minors has filed a report of physical sexual abuse. A spokesperson for the Public Prosecution Service says that the case is still being investigated. It is possible that the charges will be expanded in the near future, she says, which will mean that more victims will be included in the charges. The next hearing is on 28 February 2025.
Pedophile judge
In a court in the US state of Kentucky, a judge was shot dead by the local sheriff. The sheriff confronted the judge about the abuse of his underage daughter. The father and sheriff asked to speak to the judge in his office. Then the doors were closed and employees heard shots. The sheriff then came out with his arms in the air. The death of the judge, 54-year-old Kevin Mullins, was confirmed by Governor Andy Beshear.
Abuse of children during swimming lessons
The Public Prosecution Service Limburg (OM) is demanding a prison sentence of 30 months and a TBS measure with conditions against a 43-year-old suspect from Reuver. The OM considers it proven that the man acquired, distributed and possessed child pornography over a period of several years. According to the OM, the suspect secretly took images of naked children during his children’s swimming lessons in Roermond and Steyl in 2022 and 2023. The man also collected a large collection of child pornography via the internet and also sent child pornography online himself. The OM also considers it proven that the suspect secretly filmed his ex-partner and then shared her images online. Furthermore, the suspect had animal pornography in his possession. Experts who examined the suspect advised that the facts be attributed to the suspect to a lesser extent. The OM sees the need for long-term and compulsory treatment for the suspect. Due to the high risk of recidivism, the public prosecutor demanded a prison sentence and a TBS measure, as well as a behavioral and freedom-restricting measure. With this measure, the suspect can be supervised and monitored for even longer. The suspect must also pay compensation to various victims. The court ruled on this case on October 23.
Abuse by prison guards
The Utrecht court imposed prison sentences on November 25, 2024 on two former prison guards for the rape, sexual assault and abuse of prisoners. In addition, they were banned from the profession. The sexual abuse occurred at unexpected moments, when the women were at their most vulnerable. 62-year-old Wouter van B. from Doorn must serve 4 years in prison, in addition to which he is not allowed to work as a prison guard for six years. Three women had filed a complaint against the former prison guard, for rape, sexual assault and abuse. Van B. allegedly allowed himself to be orally satisfied in July 2022 in a room where prisoners can Skype. He also admitted to this, earlier in the Utrecht court. According to Van B., the woman in particular played an active role in the sexual acts, which also took place in the cell. But the Public Prosecution Service had previously called this completely unbelievable. Van B. allegedly exerted such psychological pressure on the prisoner that resistance was impossible.
Fred K. abuses daughter and niece
According to the Public Prosecution Service (OM), Fred K. from Boekel raped and abused his underage daughter and niece for years. He also committed indecent acts online and made child pornography. The Public Prosecution Service demanded a 9-year prison sentence and compulsory treatment. When the daughter and niece reported to the police in the spring of 2023, the case started to roll. The man is said to have committed sexual abuse over a long period, from 2014 to 2023. During a house search it came to light that he had also committed indecent acts online with 14 victims during the same period and had produced a large amount of child pornography. During a video call or chat conversation, the suspect is said to have made screen recordings and asked the girls to masturbate. The Public Prosecution Service accuses the suspect of having committed various sexual offences on an outrageously large scale. The public prosecutor: ‘The suspect abused his own daughter and niece, who were entrusted to his care. Girls who showed themselves at their most vulnerable to him on webcam felt guilty and ashamed when the police contacted their parents. While in this case there is only one person guilty: the suspect. The Public Prosecution Service is demanding a 9-year unconditional prison sentence in this case. The Public Prosecution Service also considers the chance of recurrence to be high and is therefore demanding a behavior-influencing and freedom-restricting measure when he has served his sentence. The judge ruled on February 17, 2025 and sentenced Fred K. (47) to nine years in prison in accordance with the demand for sexual abuse of his daughter and second cousin and for online indecent acts with dozens of other underage girls. The youngest were eight years old. The sentence is in accordance with the demand of the Public Prosecution Service . K. has been declared fully responsible. That is why the public prosecutor demanded a nine-year prison sentence. In addition, K. must be treated for his pedosexual disorder. He also has a contact ban and is no longer allowed to come near young children.
Judge Rueb
Author Yvonne Keuls wrote in her book ‘Annie Berber and the sorrow of a tender criminal’ how a judge from The Hague (Rueb) abused boys. Keuls was furious about ’the godforsaken arrogance’ within the court in The Hague and about ’the cowardice of politicians and Justice’. While pedo porn photos were being taken in the Palace of Justice in The Hague, those in power looked the other way. And it was not Rueb, but Keuls who was slandered and threatened. The late judge Rueb ‘couldn’t keep his hands to himself’ and ‘simply had a Justice service car pick up children that he had noticed’. The author raised the case in her book in 1985 and continued to insist that no one intervened. In Vrij Nederland in May 2010, Keuls said that Rueb’s pedophile practices ‘were common knowledge at the court in The Hague, but they just let him do what he wanted for fourteen years. It was one big conspiracy.” This happened in what Keuls called a ‘sick climate’. In that climate, as it turned out later, Judge Stolk also committed the same crime. After the publication of her book, Keuls was threatened and slandered. Charges against Rueb were dropped. The cesspool and cover-up remained closed. From 1986 to 2003, the NMa boss Kalbfleisch, who fell as a result of his misconduct in the Chipshol case, worked at the court in The Hague. And lying Judge Westenberg (also fallen due to Chipshol) was also present at the court in The Hague, from 1985 until his ignominious departure in 2009. What did the two prominent figures know about these and other cases during their long period at the ‘sick’ court in The Hague? Did they speak out about it or did they fall/fall under the ‘cowardice of politicians and Justice’ that Keuls pointed out? Striking: as a member of the Deetman committee that investigated the abuse within the The Roman Catholic Church investigated, Kalbfleisch remained completely out of the picture.
Keuls brought up the Hague case and was immediately marginalized. The Hague clerk who revealed the misconduct of Kalbfleisch and Westenberg suffered the same fate. And anyone who reasonably and calmly asks for an investigation into persistent pedophile accusations against Justice top man Demmink is tackled just as harshly. While serious investigation into the Hague gentlemen Westenberg, Rueb, Stolk and Kalbfleisch does not get off the ground and is deliberately and deliberately delayed. Nothing has changed in all that time. Just like in the 80s, politicians and Justice still cowardly look the other way when the misconduct of riffraff in a robe is brought up. Apparently, the cesspool must not be opened under any circumstances.
Public Prosecutor Joris Demmink
In 1978, Ed Nijpels advocated removing the ban on sexual relations with minors from the criminal code and allowing children to choose for themselves whether they wanted to have sexual relations with adults. This plea for pedophilia brought Nijpels into conflict with CDA senator and professor of pedagogy Van Hulst, who believed that children at school should be protected from the lusts of adults. The JOVD also stood up for pedophiles. In November 1988, the then 21-year-old Mark Rutte took office as national chairman of this club. Mark Rutte later worked as a teacher for a few hours a week, in addition to his job as prime minister. At a secondary school in The Hague, he taught social studies once a week. VVD minister Frits Korthals Altes also proposed in 1985 to legalize sex with young people from the age of twelve. Punishment should only follow if there was bribery with money or goods, abuse of power or deception. The bill came as a bombshell in the country and Korthals Altes decided not to submit the proposal to parliament after all.
In 1982, Demmink entered the Ministry of Justice, the year that Koos Hertogs was sentenced to life imprisonment.
The young Joris Demmink (11/12/1947) was the highest civil servant at the Ministry of Justice until his retirement at the end of 2012, growing up as an only child in a close-knit Gooi family. In 1966, Demmink graduated and moved to Leiden to study Dutch law. There he joined the Leidsch Studenten Corps (now called Minerva). Demmink then opted for a certain career in government. Joris Demmink worked at the Ministry of Justice from 1982 until his retirement in 2012. Before becoming Secretary-General of the Ministry of Justice in 2002, he was Deputy Director of the Police Directorate from 1982 to 1983 and from 1983 to 1988 he was the Head of the Police Directorate and subsequently Chief Director of the Rechtspleging Organisation until 1990. From 1990 to 1993 he held the position of Director-General of Justice. In the latter year he was appointed Director-General of International Affairs and Immigration.
In 1996, Demmink allegedly sexually abused numerous boys between the ages of twelve and sixteen in Turkey for which he was arrested in Turkey. Victim Mustafa was twelve when he was allegedly recruited by police officer Mehemet Korkmaz, after which he was allegedly taken to Demmink’s rooms and repeatedly sexually abused. Another victim named Osman was fourteen when he was allegedly taken to Demmink and sexually abused. Mustafa and Osman both filed charges against Demmink in September 2008 and May 2010. Officer Korkmaz, the person responsible for bringing the boys to Demmink, verified Mustafa and Osman’s accounts. Mustafa, Osman and officer Korkmaz were willing to give sworn testimony of all the acts they endured and witnessed, including an alleged third child victim of sexual assault, Yacine. Mustafa Y. and Osman B. were subsequently seriously threatened and abused in Turkey . Their family members were also approached and threatened by Emin Arslan , the former deputy chief of the Turkish national police. The same happened to journalist Burhan Kazmali, who was the first to publish about Joris Demmink’s visits to Turkey and who stayed there under the pseudonym Joseph Stein. The two boys were offered money and a new Turkish lawyer if they would withdraw the complaint filed with the Court of Appeal in The Hague. Osman refused and was severely physically abused. Mustafa and his family were taken to a safe house. Journalist Burhan Kazmali was again approached by Emin Arslan and a family member with the demand to provide Mustafa’s new address. After Kazmali refused, he was beaten unconscious on the street. All the intimidation and abuse was reported in vain, even though there was sufficient supporting evidence available. Both boys identified Mehmet Korkmaz as the police officer who had taken them to Demmink. Korkmaz himself also stated in a video interview that he had brought Mustafa and other boys to Demmink for sexual abuse. Korkmaz’s boss at the time, the former Istanbul police chief, confirmed that his police protected Demmink during his visits to Turkey in the 1990s. In a report, senior Turkish security official Huseyin Celebi describes Demmink’s vulnerability to blackmail after he was caught abusing children in Turkey in 1995. Huseyin Celebi also explained the dates in the 1990s when Demmink had visited Turkey. These datesrelate to the period mentioned in both police reports. The Dutch Public Prosecution Service also received a similar list from the Governor of Istanbul with dates on which Demmink had entered the country. The dates on the list correspond with the visit to Ankara of the EU K4 Commission, a European commission in which Demmink represented the Netherlands. Demmink denied that he had been to Turkey at all. The National Public Prosecution Service also completely ignored this supporting evidence. Two other Turkish witnesses also came forward in this case. One of them stated that he had met Demmink during the K4 visit to Ankara in 1998. A second witness stated that he had met him personally at an Interpol meeting in Antalya. Public prosecutor Murat Gök was found dead in his home on 12 April. Gök had been called the “Super Prosecutor” because of the successful operations carried out under his leadership and had been in office since 2009. Operations in which Gök was involved ranged from corruption to child abuse. He oversaw the arrest of more than 20 suspects in what was called the Barbaros operation, which followed a series of allegations of rape and abuse in the Barbaros Children’s Village. Another operation oversaw the arrest of seven suspects, including politicians and businessmen, in a corruption case in the municipality of Urla. Similar corruption cases also took place in Buca, Güzelbahçe, Değirmen, Alaçatı and other cities, resulting in dozens of arrests. According to lawyer vd Plas, Zembla journalist Sinan Can was threatened with death if he continued investigating Demmink’s paedophile activities. In 1998, Netwerk television reported how Demmink ordered children from a criminal network of child traffickers with whom he had direct contact. Nevertheless, the decisive force behind Demmink’s appointment was Piet-Hein Donner, who had just become Minister of Justice at the time. The Royal House is also said to support his appointment.
Following statements by Nico Langeveld, a sex offender in his own criminal case concerning the abuse of boys under the age of 16, which allegedly took place from a (gay) brothel and escort agency in Amsterdam, an investigation was started. The investigation eventually led in 1999 to the prosecution and conviction of two people, the brothel owner and one of his recruiters, to respectively 3 years in prison and fifteen months in prison, of which 6 months were conditional. Because Nico Langeveld had reported in his statements that two (then) chief public prosecutors and several police officers of the Amsterdam-Amstelland police force would purchase services from the gay brothel, the Rolodex investigation was started in which these specific signals were investigated. The Rolodex investigation was named after the Rolodex of professor Ger van Roon. This now deceased historian was said to have been the linchpin of the network. His Rolodex allegedly contained the names and numbers of all those involved. A report by witness Jetty Bruggenwirth was one of the reasons for the Rolodex investigation . She went to the police after her boyfriend Nico Langeveld had abused her daughter. A former morals detective called Nico Langeveld, a driver for boy brothels, the ‘most dangerous psychopath’ he had ever met. He was later sentenced to 8 years in prison and TBS. In the Rolodex investigation, the police discovered in 1997 that six people employed by the government were also involved in child prostitution. The then chief public prosecutors Jan Wolter Wabeke, Henk Wooldrik and Hans Holthuis and Joris Demmink of the Ministry of Justice were in the sights of the CIE and the National Criminal Investigation Department as suspects of indecent acts with underage boys. The suspicion followed a tip from a simple indecent offender, who indicated that “high-ranking people are allowed to do anything, while I have been arrested”. A witness was abused by Demmink when he was fourteen. He was allegedly blackmailed by a pimp and brought into contact with Van Roon, who in turn allegedly passed him on to Demmink. After a glittering career as chief public prosecutor and Financial Services Ombudsman, Wabeke was a judge at the court of appeal in The Hague. In 2003, Demmink was linked to the sexual abuse of underage boys by the magazines Panorama and Gay Krant. In its investigation, the National Criminal Investigation Department concluded that there was no evidence of criminal offences, whereupon Panorama and Gay Krant rectified their earlier allegations. A false report against Demmink in October 2003 was punished by the police judge with a suspended prison sentence of 2 months. According to the police judge, the statements were “incorrect and untrue”.
Karel Maasdam and Willy Schmitz ran a boys’ brothel at Insulindeweg 109 in Amsterdam-Oost for many years. Maasdam was sentenced to 3 years in prison in 1998. Maasdam stated that he felt like a scapegoat. For many years, his brothel was tolerated. Both police officers and social workers visited it. And suddenly it was no longer allowed. After his release, he let slip that the American intelligence service had gone through his client base, and that the Dutch intelligence service BVD had been very displeased about it. Karel Maasdam (72) was later supposed to take the witness stand, but did not show up. He knew nothing about a judicial summons. Reporter Koen Voskuil eventually went to pick him up. He says he is struggling with health problems and may be suffering from dementia. In the end, it was decided to waive his testimony. He looked too confused.
Following a request under the Government Information (Public Access) Act, a summary and inventory of the Rolodex investigation were made public on 23 December 2013.
On 21 January 2014, the ‘s-Hertogenbosch Court of Appeal started the prosecution of Joris Demmink and ordered the Public Prosecution Service to initiate an investigation. During the investigation, two other employees with a legal government function also came into the picture. The investigation findings showed that these two people were also customers of the homosexual services of the brothel. The Board of Attorneys General concluded that, based on the investigation, the two chief public prosecutors could not be considered suspects. With regard to the two employees with a legal government function, the Board also concluded that it had not been proven that they had committed any criminal offences.
Jetty Bruggenwirth stated that Nico Langeveld was the son of Maurits de Vries/Zwarte Joop (the Godfather of the Amsterdam underworld). “Chicken farmer” Nico Langeveld worked for the Social Services of Amsterdam and was also a childminder. As a pimp, he supplied boys to top officials of the justice department and worked together with Robby Volkers, with whom he had been in the Bijlmer prison! Jetty Bruggenwirth (53) herself was also sentenced to 10 months in prison in April 2016 for complicity, although she maintains to this day that she is innocent and was forced to watch as Nico Langeveld raped her daughter. At the start of the hearing, Bruggenwirth was asked about her relationship with Nico Langeveld. “I was held hostage in his home,” she said. She also denied that Nico was her partner. “He was a friend with whom I could go into hiding.” Over time, that hiding place no longer proved to be a safe haven. Bruggenwirth stated, among other things, that Nico Langeveld had shot her. Things went wrong from the day that Rien Blokker and Walter Stevens of the CID showed up at the door. After that, Nico became violent, according to Bruggenwirth. After three months, she tried to get away from him, after which he locked her up in the attic of his home at Walenburgersingel 127 where he regularly raped her daughter. And it didn’t stop there. “Nico rented out his own children, also to high-ranking officials. She had seen that from pay cheques. He brought children to the homes of Van Roon, Salomonson, Demmink, Wabeke and Holthuis.” According to Bruggenwirth, Nico collected money in the 3e Oosterparkstraat from Willy Schmidts, the man who was convicted in 1998 together with brothel owner Karel Maasdam, for whom Nico was a driver. Bruggenwirth heard from Schmidts that there were parties on the houseboat of drug lord Klaas Bruinsma. High-ranking officials also came there. “I saw the children myself,” she said. “They were vulnerable. They smoked and took Valium tablets. I estimate they were no older than 14.” The pedophile parties also took place on an oak houseboat on the Amstel and in an apartment on the Beemsterstraat, but also in the basement of the courthouse in Amsterdam. The two often met at cafe Ruk en Pluk on the Linaeusstraat in Amsterdam where child pornography was also sold. The sister of Johan Verhoek (the stutterer) lived on a double-decker houseboat near the Schellingwouderbrug and child pornography was also sold there, including footage taken in the Amstel Hotel.
In the nineties, Demmink regularly visited his colleague Wabeke at a Brabant farm. There is a conversation report of unknown origin about Wabeke from 28 August 2003. It was a candid and intimate conversation with former chief public prosecutor Jan Wolther Wabeke (JW) and his partner Jan Swinkels. Demmink is said to have taken Libor Ctvrtlík, a Czech friend, to Wabeke’s house. The Czech was a porn actor – something that was often snickered about at justice parties and dinners. In 2019, the socialist party (SP) asked the cabinet about it, which was also mentioned in the investigation. But Henk Krol, now chair of the 50plus faction in the House of Representatives, said during a preliminary witness hearing in Utrecht: Wabeke showed him a videotape with homosexual pornography, which he had received as a gift from Demmink. The lead role in that porn film is played by Demmink’s young boyfriend, the Czech actor Libor Ctvrtlík. The title was Das f***ende Klassenzimmer ,” Krol recalled. “I don’t know if they were underage boys. But his boyfriend was young, the children in the class even younger.” Krol’s words show that Wabeke wanted to pass on that video to him. After an illustrious career as chief public prosecutor and Financial Services Ombudsman, Wabeke was a judge at the court of appeal in The Hague “when his name surfaced in a less attractive file in 2014. The De Roestige Spijker foundation tried to gain clarity in those cases. They managed to get former morals detectives and justice department employees to testify under oath. It was an Amsterdam morals detective who named Wabeke as one of the chief public prosecutors who, according to an informant, was present at sex parties at Ger van Roon’s, a professor in Amsterdam-Noord. The claim was investigated in the utmost secrecy, but the investigation was leaked, so that everyone involved was informed. To the frustration of the investigation team, the investigation was stopped.
Emile Broersma was commander of the observation team at a department of the police’s Special Investigation Department in the late 1990s. The report of his witness statement shows that several suspects came forward: “Our assignment was to gather information about four suspects who were being investigated by the National Criminal Investigation Department at the time. One of those suspects was Demmink.” Broersma states that this investigation only lasted a few days: “The reason why this investigation was so short was that the case broke down at some point.” According to him, the reason for this was “that there was a leak to one of the suspects involved. According to Broersma, this was public prosecutor Hans Holthuis of the national public prosecutor’s office. “I was told this by my direct supervisor, Mr. Knapen (office manager). He told me that our department management (which also falls under the national public prosecutor’s office) found it very complicated to do this investigation into bosses.” Later in the interrogation, Broersma also names the two other suspects, who also turned out to be part of their ‘bosses’: “In addition to the names he had already mentioned, suspects in the investigation were Messrs. Wabeke and Woldrik.” Both were also public prosecutors. The observation team was instructed to stop the investigation immediately. A request to the then national criminal investigation information service for the deployment of observation teams on Demmink and the officers was rejected by the head of the service, the Amsterdam police chief, Pieter-Jaap Aalbersberg.
Leen de Koter, a detective at the CIE (Criminal Intelligence Units) at the time, also made a statement in which Wabeke was mentioned. He explained that the CIE had information that high-ranking individuals were involved in the abuse of minors, particularly boys. “The CIE investigation was focused on Professor Ger van Roon, who would organize parties in his own home where sex orgies with minors took place.” De Koter, like Broersma, declared under oath which high-ranking individuals were involved. These were Messrs. Waabeeke, Woldrik, Holthuijzen and Demmink.” De Koter also left no doubt that the investigation was being ruined: A number of house searches were carried out, including in Van Roon’s home. The search of Van Roon’s home yielded nothing. I was there myself and it immediately struck me that Van Roon was clearly prepared for our arrival. While the house searches were to be carried out as a coordinated action, the examining magistrate did not arrive at Van Roon’s until 8 a.m., while the other raids had taken place earlier (at 6 a.m.). I assume that this time difference in the execution of the house searches was done on the authority of the Public Prosecution Service. This is not usual, because with this type of coordinated action the intention is of course to carry them out at the same time. Van Roon opened the door, had the coffee ready for us, so to speak, and did not ask at all what we were doing there. After a brief explanation by the examining magistrate, we were allowed to do as far as Van Roon was concerned. I noticed that there was a video connection in the cupboard where the TV was located and that there must have been a video recorder and tapes that had been removed. I could see that from the dust residue. It was also striking that there was a computer connection and cables, but no computer had been found. In his statement, De Koter also confirms that Fred Teeven also knew the names of the suspects. A third witness statement in which Wabeke came forward is that of Jaap Hoek, who at the time worked as a chief inspector at the Youth and Morals Police in Amsterdam and led the child pornography team there. Hoek confirms De Koter’s version, and also remembers how the investigation was sabotaged: “because I myself had to conclude that this investigation fell apart immediately after it started. It cannot be otherwise than that there was talk. If you talk about an investigation that is being broken, you can also think of the word “linking out”.” In 1997, De Koter was involved in the Rolodex investigation as a detective for the criminal intelligence service.
Former Minister Opstelten later claimed that Demmink was not a suspect at the time, while he was indeed. However, former detective Leen de Koter testified as a witness to the examining magistrate in Utrecht that Demmink and three other chief public prosecutors were indeed named as suspects in the Rolodex case. Former State Secretary Fred Teeven led the investigation into the ‘Rolodex case’ as public prosecutor in the late nineties. This secret project investigated the possible involvement of four high-ranking persons from the judicial world in sex parties with underage boys.
The names of Demmink and 3 other chief officers came out again when their secret phone numbers surfaced in a diary of male prostitutes. In April 2014, former chief of detectives Emile Broersma also said that Joris Demmink, Jan Wolter Wabeke, Hans Holthuis and Henk Wooldrik were suspects in the investigation and that they had to be shadowed. Chief of the KLPD J. de Wijs then ruined the investigation by informing Hans Holthuis about the investigation into them.
Koos van Woudenberg claims to have been abused at a young age in an apartment in Amsterdam belonging to Professor Ger van Roon. In the house he met, according to him, former mayor Ed van Thijn, Prince Claus and former minister Onno Ruding. According to Van Woudenberg he had to orally satisfy Ruding. He also allegedly saw Prince Claus in a catering establishment ‘in relation to young boys’. However, his statement is shaky. Professor Ger van Roon did indeed live in a small apartment in Amsterdam Noord, but that building was only built in 1995, according to data from the land registry. The question is therefore in which apartment Van Woudenberg would have been in 1982.
The former employee of the then GG&GD Raphael Beth (70), educational psychologist and at the time employed by the GGD as a social worker, became a second witness in the case. In the late 1980s, he kept a list of young boys who worked in prostitution in Amsterdam. Raphael Beth came to 350 during an initial count. According to the official figures, it would concern ‘only’ 35 boys. However, Beth came to ten times that number, he stated that the boys recruited each other. They all had lists with them with the names of men they could visit. According to Beth, he had a good view of the group because they came to him with problems. In addition, he visited the six or seven boy brothels in Amsterdam once a week to talk to the owner. Beth states that ’the entire pedo prostitution’ was tolerated at that time, there was no repressive policy. However, he stated that he did not know Ger van Roon, who was referred to by witness Van Woudenberg as ’the spider in the web’. Raphael Beth, gave a statement on 3 August 1998 because he was in Amsterdam brothels, pick-up places and gay bars as a street corner worker almost daily between 1988 and 1994 and stated: “The boy prostitute scene can be divided into the regular and the pedo prostitution circuit. The first group, which researcher Beth mainly focused on, works in brothels and bars in the Paardenstraat, the area around the Nieuwendijk, the Central Station and several parks. About 400 boys from the Netherlands and abroad earned their living there”. The 43-year-old boy prostitute Bart van Well still struggles with post-traumatic stress and mood swings. He holds the state, which he believes should have taken tougher action against youth prostitution , responsible for this.
The editor-in-chief of the NOS-Journaal, Hans Laroes, stated in January 2004 before the Council for Journalism that the research department of the news program had been aware of rumors about Demmink since 2000. Investigative officers allegedly told the investigative journalists that Demmink played a role in the Rolodex investigation and was suspected of having tipped off the suspects.
Joris Demmink is said to have regular sexual contact with young boys in the Anne Frankplantsoen in Eindhoven and in Prague and in the backseat of his official car. PSV director Fons Spooren was also arrested there earlier after having sex with underage boys. The Dean of Weert and an unnamed clergyman are also said to be regulars, as would later emerge from research by the magazine Panorama . A lost identification card from the Ministry of Justice was said to have been found in the gay park.
In 2007, the Telegraaf reported that surveillance teams during the Rolodex investigation in 1998 had found that very young boys arrived at Amsterdam Central Station and were then taken to Van Roon’s flat in Amsterdam-Noord for “sinister sex parties”. The newspaper also reported that a so-called counter-action had been carried out by criminals: an anonymous source – who was one of the suspects in the Rolodex investigation – had filed a complaint of child abuse against a public prosecutor involved in the investigation, in the hope of destabilising the investigation. That is why the investigation was supposedly stopped. The Telegraaf then referred to the never-solved murder of paediatrician Joyce Labruyere in 1991. An informant at the time allegedly passed on to the BVD that the murder was related to sex parties with minors in which a public prosecutor from Rotterdam was also said to be involved. In 2008, lawyer Adèle van der Plas , who assisted Hüseyin Baybasin, tried to obtain an article 12 procedure to enforce the prosecution of Demmink.
Kleintje Muurkrant published reports about Demmink’s involvement in Desi Bouterse’s coup when he was still working for the Ministry of Defence (until 1982). According to a CRI source, the reason for Joris’s exodus from Defence was said to have been sexual. Joris allegedly had a blossoming relationship with a young Surinamese soldier from the Bouterse team, which was responsible for the September murders in 1982. Stan de Jong also writes about this aspect of the affair.
Ben van den Brink made the news in 2009 about abuses in youth care in the Netherlands. Van den Brink said he discovered that both his daughters were being abused by his father-in-law. Van den Brink then came into conflict with the authorities, was prosecuted for threats and illegal possession of weapons and saw his children placed in the care of the Youth Care Office. According to Van den Brink, the abuse only continued there. Van den Brink referred to the ‘very powerful child abuse circuit’ that had been able to flourish in the Netherlands for decades ‘under the leadership of completely corrupt justice figures, in which Joris Demmink is said to have played a central role. On Tuesday 13 September 2022, a book presentation of the book “A political prisoner in the Netherlands, the story of Hüseyin Baybasin” by author Rein Gerritsen was held in Pakhuis de Zwijger in Amsterdam . Yücel Yesilgöz, the father of the now outgoing Minister of Justice Dilan Yesilgoz, framed Hüseyin Baybasin, who is still in prison for life after a Turkish interpreter T.Cetinkaya allegedly gave an incorrect translation during the interrogations and tabs of Baybasin. On 12 April 2007, ten days after Baybasin filed a complaint against Demmink, Demmink went to ‘prison visit’ Baybasin together with Mr. M. Kolkert (the Advocate General at the Court of ‘s-Hertogenbosch who obtained the life sentence for Demmink in 2002) and Mr. G. Wouters, the chief director of the Department of Correctional Institutions at the ministry, the ‘big prison boss’ of our country, so to speak. Questions were asked about this visit in parliament on 7 May 2007. What is remarkable in the answer is that the minister emphatically denied Kolkert’s presence in the ‘official delegation’. The purpose of the visit of the ‘official delegation’ was to intimidate Baybasin into withdrawing his report. With this unique action, Demmink himself provided additional evidence of his involvement in the manipulated legal process.
The website “Klokkenluideronline” of former NRC journalist Micha Kat , placed the Demmink case in the context of a supposed ‘Dutch Dutroux network’. ‘In the Netherlands, from the early nineties onwards, a network of dignitaries was active for a long time, that would indulge in the most repulsive forms of sex with minors. ‘Most members of this network would have key positions in the world of law and justice and civil service. According to the website, key roles in the network would be reserved for Frits Salomonson, the legal advisor to the royal family, Prince Claus, former public prosecutors Hans Holthuis, Jan Wolter Wabeke and Joost Tonino, former professor Ger van Roon, former minister Job de Ruiter, VVD prominent Ed Nijpels, former vice president of the Maastricht court Fokke Fernhout and PvdA prominent Ed van Tijn. The website continued to publish about Demmink in November 2008, drawing on the police file of the Anne Frankplantsoen case and conversation notes between former Panorama journalist Fred de Brouwer and former LPF minister Hilbrand Nawijn, in which it was suggested that Demmink’s driver, Rob Mostert, had died an unnatural death because he wanted to spill the beans about his boss. At the age of 52, Mostert died of heart failure one day before he was to make a statement about his boss to the police. An event about which the former chief commissioner of police Eric Nordholt of Amsterdam is said to have said to vice-admiral Nico Buis, former head of the BVD, during a lunch: “That Demmink is also blindly lucky. Mostert is said to have had to pick up sluts for Demmink with his service car. Demmink is said to have performed sexual acts with the boys on the back seat of his service car in the presence of Mostert. Demmink is said to have made a habit of calling Mostert out of bed at two in the morning to pick him up from a well-known gay club in The Hague, after which he vomited in the service car because he was completely drunk. Mostert went to his boss and reported this behavior. The boss spoke to his DG about it. The latter did not want any publicity and this led to a cover-up that resulted in the boss being transferred. Hilbrand Nawijn is said to have said about Demmink, among other things: ‘This man will do anything to keep his power. He is sharpened. Pay close attention: you wouldn’t be the first person whose brake lines suddenly appear to be rusted through. Earlier, Gerard Hamer , lawyer for Frank Leenders (a youth prostitute who filed a complaint against Demmink in 2003, and a source for De Brouwer), fell to his death from his bicycle in Amsterdam. Frank Leenders was allegedly abused by Demmink as a child. Rob Van Gijzel and Van Rijsewijk advised him to report the incident to the police, but the next day he was dragged from his bed by the police and he retracted his statement. Under pressure from police officers and Demmink’s ministry, they think. Leenders left for abroad because he no longer felt safe and was prosecuted for perjury. Minister Donner meanwhile threatened to ’take to court’ all media that further identified ’the civil servant’ and also reported ’that there is still no sign of smoke, let alone fire’. At the office of Demmink’s lawyer, Harro Knijff of De Brauw Blackstone Westbroek, ‘a deal’ was made ’that no one is allowed to say anything about. Demmink preferred this ‘deal’ to a summons to both magazines, something Donner strongly insisted on. The editors-in-chief of GayKrant and Panorama were no longer allowed to talk or write about Demmink on pain of a fine of 100,000 euros. This was based on summary proceedings brought against the magazines by the dean of Weert, who was also accused of child abuse in the Anne Frank park. This dean won, but the judge in Den Bosch refused to see the evidence from the magazines. Early November 2003, there was a ‘commotion’ at the editorial offices of the Gay Krant and Panorama because they were supposed to have to rectify ‘while Demmink had admitted to everything’. In the conversation on 19 October, Demmink had ‘named three Czech boys by name’ and ‘could not rule out that he had also slept with underage boys. Demmink has admitted that he did not always ask the age of ‘his boys’. The German newspaper ‘Die Welt’ also wrote in an article: ‘Kein Einzeltater’ a link between Dutroux and a Dutch pedophile network and reports on a film in which the 13-year-old German boy Manuel Schadwald is forced to satisfy the perverse lusts of several men. After he was forced he choked. The film that was made of this was found in Zandvoort at the later murdered Gerrit Ulrich. Furthermore, so-called ‘snuff movies’ are mentioned.
In October 2024, the Demmink issue and Rutte’s involvement flared up again and became trending on platform X. The Ministry of Justice appeared to have contributed almost 120,000 euros to Demmink’s defense. The costs were incurred in 2013 and 2014 for legal assistance in criminal proceedings (over 64,000) and assistance in civil proceedings (almost 49,000). In addition to these expenses, there was an amount of 6,529.50 euros that Demmink had to pay in the lawsuit that he had unsuccessfully initiated against the AD. He wanted the newspaper to rectify articles about him, but the judge rejected that . In that verdict, the judge spoke of ‘careful’ reporting by the AD. Demmink had demanded rectification and substantial damages from the AD, because he had allegedly suffered unjustified damage as a result of reporting. In the AD article in October 2012, several eyewitnesses stated that the then Defense official had contact with a notorious Hague boy pimp in the early 1980s. The Rotterdam court found that the AD was careful enough in its publications. Author Koen Voskuil had checked the reliability of sources and had not published incorrect facts. Despite this verdict, Opstelten was also prepared to reimburse the more than 6,500 euros for this case. His explanation was that ‘it had not been established that the accusations made by the AD were justified.
According to Leenders, Demmink and Heineman also visited gay clubs in Prague together. In this context, Nawijn also spoke about Hans Heinemann’s driver who was allegedly murdered. Hans Heinemann is the Dutch top diplomat with whom Demmink abused children in the Pinokkio bar in Prague.
From the Ministry of Justice, Fred Bakker, Demmink’s right-hand man at Panorama and GayKrant, reported in an attempt to influence the upcoming publication pro-Demmink. On 8 October 2003, Panorama and Gaykrant finally published an article stating that Demmink abused minors in both Eindhoven (Anne Frankplantsoen) and Prague (Pinocchio sex bar). In both cases, Demmink used his official car to do so. Frank Leenders reported to GayKrant as a ‘witness-complainant’. At the Pinocchio bar, the doorman recognised Demmink from a photo shown to him and said: ‘Yes, we know that man. He comes here in an official car from the embassy.’ It was also Fred de Brouwer who received confirmation of the rumours about Demmink from former Minister of Justice Hilbrand Nawijn. Ironically, Nawijn added the caveat that Demmink ‘literally went over dead bodies with regard to his career,’ and that one had to be careful with statements that incriminated him: ‘before you knew it, a brake line had rusted through .’
An anonymous witness – who said he was in a clinic at the time due to depression – stated that Paul de Leeuw, André van Duin and Ed van Tijn had raped children, and that he himself had been abused by Demmink and Prince Claus in Salomonson’s ’torture chamber’. Robert Mink Kok is said to be in possession of compromising photo and film material showing members of the Royal Family, judges and senior officials from the Ministry of Security and Justice. According to Holtrop, the criminals Stanley Hills and Evert Hingst were liquidated by the Dutch secret services because they blackmailed Demmink and others with the compromising material. 59-year-old Micha Kat was arrested on suspicion of, among other things, sedition and threats. He was arrested in Northern Ireland in mid-2021 and has been in custody ever since , now in the Netherlands. According to Kat, his regime has been tightened because he is said to be sending audio messages that were then posted on a website. Micha Kat has been convicted several times in the past for his statements and also for vandalism and false bomb threats . He was sentenced to ten months in prison because he accused editor-in-chief Marcel Gelauff of NOS of having ties to a pedophile network. He was recently sentenced to seven days in prison on appeal for multiple death threats against journalist Bart Mos of the Telegraaf.
In November 2012, Pieter Omtzigt asked parliamentary questions about the Demmink affair to the then ministers of Foreign Affairs (Timmermans) and of Security and Justice (Opstelten). In 2013, Omtzigt was pressured by Sybrand Buma to stop asking questions about Demmink. Former minister Donner and then Hirsch Ballin warned him to refrain from further actions regarding Demmink. Omtzigt had been approached by a former prison director, who reported from his own observations that a (former) assistant of Demmink had been ‘particularly annoyed’ about the fact that she had had to arrange dates for her boss with ‘young, underage men’. Around that time, Omtzigt said in an interview with ThePostOnline that he was also being shadowed by the Turkish secret service. Omtzigt and his colleague were still not completely discouraged and in October 2013 they again asked parliamentary questions about the matter. There were entry and exit data in the investigation file that showed that Demmink was indeed in Turkey on 20 July 1996, while it had been repeatedly claimed that he had never been there. Thanks to Pieter Omtzigt’s determination, it became known that the State paid all of Demmink’s legal costs at the time.
The Demmink case had meanwhile developed into an international scandal. It turned out that the Dutch Public Prosecution Service had systematically refused to initiate a criminal investigation. A group of American congressmen complained to the European Union about the way in which the Dutch Ministry of Justice had handled the Demmink case. The questions concerned the two minor boys who had accused Demmink of rape in Turkey and a reassuring letter from the Dutch ambassador in Washington to the American Congress. Omtzigt and Oskam wanted to know from the cabinet, among other things, whether what the ambassador had written was true and whether a thorough investigation had been conducted into the accusations made against Demmink. And whether it was true that Demmink had not been in Turkey at all during the period that the Turkish boys said they had been raped. Frans Timmermans of Foreign Affairs and Ivo Opstelten of Justice responded by saying that they fully supported the ambassador’s letter. Thanks to questions from Omtzigt and Oskam, it would turn out a year later that Demmink had indeed been in Turkey during the period indicated by the boys. It also turned out that the Public Prosecution Service had not even asked the Turkish authorities about Demmink’s entry details. Although the letter from ambassador Rudolf Bekink was completely destroyed, Opstelten and Frans Timmermans indicated that they were not prepared to ask Bekink to rectify the letter to the American members of Congress. Omtzigt had secretly continued for a while after Buma had instructed him to drop the Demmink case. This is also evident from the conversation he had with Ottens afterwards. The third and last time that Omtzigt asked parliamentary questions about Demmink was in September 2013. Ottens held various management positions at the Ministry of Justice from 1991 to 2005, and in this way got to know Demmink personally and also worked with him and accompanied him on several business trips. When asked, he stated that he had never noticed any paedophile activities by the then director-general. Ottens knew that Demmink was gay and had never noticed any preference for underage boys. However, he was later convinced of this by the witness statements at the Utrecht court. According to Ottens, it is also not without risk to get involved in the Demmink case. After talking to a number of his former colleagues at the justice department about the Demmink case, he found his car with four flat tyres. He filed a report and a report was drawn up, but the police were unable to do anything further with it. Seven people involved in the Demmink casehave been busy then died an unnatural death. Ottens still remembers well how Omtzigt told him that he had found the conversation with Donner extremely unpleasant and that it had made a great impression on him. Buma, who has been mayor of Leeuwarden since 2019, previously stated through his spokesperson that he did not want to comment on the speaking ban that he had allegedly imposed on Pieter Omtzigt. Ultimately, Omtzigt became overstrained due to all the opposition.
Under international pressure, the Dutch Public Prosecution Service (OM) started a criminal investigation into Demmink in 2014. This was done at the request of the court in Arnhem. On 20 January 2014, the Court of Appeal in ‘s-Hertogenbosch ordered the prosecution of Demmink in an Article 12 Sv procedure for the alleged rape of the two Turkish boys in the 1990s. For the first time, witnesses were heard in public about the pedophilia rumours. The Public Prosecution Service also conducted an investigation, and Demmink was officially suspected for the first time. Rumours about his pedophile practices together with Prince Claus in Salomonson ’s house were widely reported in the press . However, the investigation again did not lead to prosecution. Three years later, on 18 August 2017, the Court of Appeal in Arnhem-Leeuwarden ruled that no further prosecution would be carried out. The investigation is said to have convincingly demonstrated that the suspicions that had arisen are merely speculations and assumptions. In another case in 2014 against Andre Beemster, the director of Youth Care, the victim received 60,000 euros in damages from Youth Care, but Beemster was allowed to keep his position. In January 2014, a criminal investigation into Demmink was launched after all. Omtzigt was still far from convinced of the innocence of the top civil servant. On March 5, 2014, when witness hearings were taking place in Utrecht as part of the investigation, Omtzigt wrote on Twitter that Opstelten was not neutral because he paid the costs of the lawsuit that Demmink filed against an AD journalist for defamation. Omtzigt suggested that there was more going on, that Demmink might be guilty after all and that he was being protected. From 2015 onwards, Omtzigt left the Demmink case to VNL MP Louis Bontes, but when he submitted a motion requesting the government to increase pressure on Turkey to cooperate with the requests for legal assistance regarding Demmink, that motion was voted down by the VVD. Mark Rutte personally ensured that Omtzigt was removed from the Demmink file. Omtzigt quit when Sybrand Buma came into his office in a rage. Because he had been instructed by Rutte to stop asking parliamentary questions about Demmink, after which he handed the file over to Bontes.
The Amsterdam court allowed Joris Demmink, Ivo Opstelten and Fred Teeven to testify about child abuse in the 1980s and 1990s, following a request from Bart van Well, a former prostitute who claims to have been abused by Demmink when he was 15. Van Well claims to have had paid sex with Joris Demmink in 1988. It was only more than fifteen years later that Bart suddenly recognised him in a magazine, according to his own statement. Demmink, who has since retired, has always vehemently denied the allegations. According to the Public Prosecution Service, previous investigations yielded no evidence of abuse. As a minor in the 1980s, Van Well ended up in a network of child pornography and prostitution in Amsterdam. The police were aware of these networks, but did not tackle them,” said Martin de Witte, Van Well’s lawyer. The Amsterdam court did not allow media to record the interrogations of Joris Demmink and Fred Teeven during the preliminary witness hearing in the case. Fred Teeven appealed the court’s decision, which forced him to testify under oath about the Rolodex investigation.
In June 2016, the Public Prosecution Service decided again not to prosecute and asked the court in The Hague to agree to the wish not to prosecute. According to the Public Prosecution Service, the two-year investigation had not yielded any suspicions of criminal acts. A complicating factor in the investigation was that Turkey did not want to provide legal assistance.
In 2017, former campaign staffer for US President Donald Trump, Roger Stone, reported on Twitter that Trump’s former national security adviser Michael Flynn was in possession of a list of practicing pedophiles in high places, and that its publication would cause quite a stir. The court in Arnhem granted a request from the Public Prosecution Service to refrain from prosecuting Demmink due to a lack of evidence. Incidentally, this happened after the chairman of the court that had decided to prosecute, Rob van den Heuvel, died shortly before he was to pass judgment when his rowing boat was accidentally run over on the Nederrijn near Huissen. The Court of Appeal, chaired by judge Rob van den Heuvel, had started an investigation into the possibilities of prosecuting Joris Demmink in January 2014. A few months before the crucial hearing, Rob van den Heuvel had the bizarre and fatal accident .
In 2018 and 2019, Joris Demmink was again mentioned in connection with a sex scandal. A 15-year-old girl claimed to have been repeatedly abused, threatened with a knife to her throat, blackmailed and impregnated by her father and a group of men, including Demmink. The child’s grandmother had previously filed a report after she allegedly caught the father. The girl’s brother was also allegedly drugged and abused. She was denied a medical examination when she filed the report. The father later married a judge in The Hague. Hofman corporate investigations examined the computers and did indeed find thousands of child pornography downloads and a program to investigate networks for passwords. In a later police investigation called Waterhoen, pornography of young girls was found on the father’s computers, but these were supposedly not his, but his intern or an accountant who had been fired. But even after the accountant was fired, the sex sites were still logged in at night. This is said to have happened in an upstairs room of a café in The Hague, in the Nieuwe Scheveningen forest near her house, in the parental home and in a cube house in Rotterdam Marlies van Muiswinkel, the girl’s mother, tried to force the Public Prosecution Service to prosecute via the court and wrote a book about it. But the court rejected the request, because the statement was said to be suspicious and inconsistent. However, two gynaecologists stated that the abused girl had indeed been pregnant. According to the girl, the fetus was said to have been buried in the forest. Sniffer dogs later indicated in the forest that something had been in the ground, after which the police also investigated it later, but nothing was found then. The girl has been severely traumatised for years. Two reports were not filed. The older sister of the abused child discovered that the father was on all kinds of children’s sites such as HABO and porn sites. He showed interest in gangbangs and wore women’s clothing, but the man strongly denies this. He used the older sister’s name on all kinds of sex sites. The police initially found nothing on the searched computers and hard drives and these were returned to the father. Minister Grapperhaus never followed up on it either . Author Yvonne Keuls wrote about it and filed a complaint against a judge in The Hague. According to Yvonne Keuls, dozens of young people who were picked up from children’s homes were flogged in the Palace of Justice. Thomas van der Ven, a juvenile judge in Nijmegen, was convicted of child pornography, but immediately disappeared to Portugal. The judge in charge, Jan Wolter Wabeke, dismissed an article 12 procedure in the girl’s case. Wabeke himself had previously been a suspect and was therefore not exactly impartial. The radio program Argosgot hold of a photo of Demmink at former chief public prosecutor Wabeke’s home in Best. Wabeke fought with Henk Krol since the eighties for the establishment of gay marriage. Not only fellow villager Henk Krol but also Adrianus Marinus Kyvon (alias Andre van Duin) were friends with Wabeke. In February 2023, Adrianus Marinus Kyvon was suddenly blackmailed with the case. Kyvon reported this. ( André van Duin was born under the name Adrianus Marinus Kloot. (In 1966, this was changed to Kyvon by Royal Decree ).
On December 8, 2018, another broadcast of the program Argos also caused a stir in the Netherlands. This was about ‘ ritual child abuse ‘. Minister of Justice Ferdinand Grapperhaus responded to parliamentary questions that he saw no reason for further investigation into the nature and extent of this form of child abuse in the Netherlands. A whistleblower from the investigative world told about “a large pedophile network in The Hague”, in which not only Demmink, but “many more high officials and politicians would be involved”. However, the case was never proven . Omtzigt watched it with dismay and was not allowed to make any further statements about it , after which he became overstrained and has never fully recovered since.
Edward Brongersma , a Dutch politician , lawyer, legal scholar and criminologist, on behalf of the PvdA was a member of the Senate of the States General from 1946 to 1950 and from 1963 to 1977 and was a strong supporter and promoter of pedophilia .
The Rotterdam court acquitted 56-year-old Huig Plug from Katwijk of doxing on December 4, 2024. The Public Prosecution Service (OM) had demanded a two-month prison sentence against the conspiracy theorist in one of the first criminal cases about doxing: the intentional sharing of personal data with the aim of intimidating someone. The Katwijker shared Demmink’s personal data on X at the end of December last year . This happened during an ongoing criminal case against Member of Parliament Gideon van Meijeren of Forum voor Democratie. The court ruled that doxing was not proven in this case. ‘The messages were posted on X before the introduction of the law that makes doxing punishable as of January 1, 2024. Failure to delete the messages after this date cannot be seen as punishable dissemination of the data ‘, the court states. Plug was arrested on January 31, 2025 and spent one day in a Rotterdam police cell. The police searched his house and confiscated a computer, which they used to delete the messages. A 54-year-old woman from Uithoorn was also arrested after Demmink filed a report. It is striking that three young girls, a lawyer, a Turkish public prosecutor, a chief commissioner of police, a driver and Stolk’s wife lost their lives in this case. Sources: Top officials in pedophile network, The Wabeke Papers, Runderkamp Papers, Rolodex investigation, Richard Carl Samsom, Reconstruction of Rolodex investigation, Summary of Rolodex investigation and inventory, Information provision regarding the Rolodex investigation, Disappearance of Manuel Schadwald, Reports of rape and sexual abuse, The facts about Hüseyin Baybasin, The Baybasin case, The murder of Joyce Labruyere, Fons Spooren affair, Witness ‘Bart’, Settlements by Justice with victims, Victim Mustafa Y. Video statement of Policeman Mehmet Korkmaz, Report against Ivo Opstelten, Report Mustafa Y.
Judge Cornelis Stolk and serial killer Koos Hertogs
In 1980, the paedophile examining magistrate Chris Stolk took the then thirty-year-old child serial killer Koos Hertogs (16/12/1949) under his protection. About Cornelis Stolk, he says that he had known him since the early seventies. At that time, Stolk was the judge who imposed a sentence on him. During this detention, the intense contact between Hertogs and Stolk arose. It was then that he received driving lessons and, according to himself, during the exam he had to ‘do a few simple exercises and read out a license plate’, after which he passed. Stolk had also submitted a request for clemency when Hertogs was in custody again. During another arrest, Hertogs told Stolk that he was guilty, but despite that, Stolk acquitted him. A co-suspect was punished. Hertogs grew up in a family of seventeen children on the Jan Steenstraat in the Schilderswijk district of The Hague and murdered 8 to 16 children and was only sentenced to life imprisonment for 3 of them. He ended up in EBI in Vught where he was put in the long stay. His mother was a cleaner in a brothel and his father was a street vendor and alcoholic. His mother ordered him to steal. According to Hertogs, he was humiliated by her because he was unwanted. He went from boarding school to boarding school and even got juvenile TBS. Between the ages of fifteen and thirty, he was convicted of about fifty crimes, including robberies, attempted manslaughter and possession of firearms. In 1973, he was examined by a psychiatrist and described as a psychopath who lives in a narcissistic illusionary world, without a sense of guilt and a danger to public order. Hertogs became a sex club doorman and worked as a cathartic for a long time. During one of his convictions, he got Cornelis Stolk as a judge. Stolk visited Hendriks in prison and had a driving instructor who was a police officer give him driving lessons during his detention and get him a driver’s license in exchange for sexual favors. He also made sure that Hertogs got a lawyer and a psychiatrist, which allowed him to be released early, allowing him to commit the child murders. Stolk himself came to the house with the torture chamber on the Zuidwal. The psychiatrist (Liane Latour) was a friendly downstairs neighbor of Stolk. In five years, Hertogs murdered Tialda Visser (12), Edith Post (11), Emy den Boer (18) and most likely also Anita Porthuis, Marjo Winkens (17), Riky Bartels and two Swedish girls Ann Jonsson (18) and Gun Johansson (19). All victims suffered stab and/or gunshot wounds and were stripped of their earrings, which Hertogs kept. Hendriks had a torture chamber above his home on the Zuidwal in The Hague and murdered his young victims there after first imprisoning them, drugging them with chloroform, torturing them and sexually abusing them. The judge who regularly went to Thailand for sex holidays to abuse young boys there was never seriously prosecuted and died on 10 July 2004. Hendriks never confessed and according to his lawyer Duynstee, who was informed of Judge Stolk’s excesses, arranged by Stolk, Hendriks never spoke about it. Stolk replaced Hendriks’ original lawyer because he was indiscreet about his sexual excesses with Hendriks. Advocate General H. Feber visited Hendriks in his cell in the Bijlmer prison together with two BVD people and allegedly threatened Hendriks in his cell. Feber told him to keep his mouth shut about the relationship with Stolk and literally told him that he had one foot in the grave because of the rumours that were now starting. According to Hertogs, he was taken from his cell not long after for a phone call. That phone call never came, but when he returned to his cell, all the letters he had ever received from Stolk were gone. The now deceased journalist Sytze van der Zee wrote a book about Koos Hertogs; “Zuidwal, dossier of a Dutch serial killer”. One of the two detectives from The Hague who were assigned to the case eventually succumbed to it himself. Hertogs was eventually sentenced to life imprisonment in 1981 for three of the murders, although he was suspected of more than sixteen murders. As evidence, a bite wound in his little finger by Emy, the earrings, the chloroform found, and blood and hair found from his victims. Hertogs, who nevertheless always maintained his innocence, made a ‘partial confession’ a few years ago, which he repeated in the report recorded with a hidden camera that was broadcast in 2010 in the program of Peter R. de Vries. The child murderer had made this partial confession in order to be admitted to a TBS clinic, which meant that he would (temporarily) no longer have to serve his sentence in prison. Peter approached a childhood friend of Hendriks Nico van Empel, a fraudster who was hiding in Thailand with a wife and two children and had him send a letter to the EBI in order to elicit a confession from Hertogs. Peter R. de Vries broadcast images of Koos Hertogs on Dutch television, somewhat veiled, after a court order to do so in its entirety. De Vries had Van Empel make recordings in Koos Hertogs’ cell with a hidden camera. Van Empel visited Hertogs eight times.During these meetings, Hertogs confessed that he wanted to abuse girls because of his personality disorder and that he used even more drugs to suppress this, but that he was unable to do so. He said that his first murder victim was Tialda Visser. In his confessions, Hertogs said that he knew about the murder of two Swedish girls in the Belgian Ardennes. The Belgian police came to question him about this in 1989. The girls were shot dead in 1976 and found in the Ardennes. The Swedish tourists had been in a club the day before where Koos Hertogs was a bouncer. According to Hertogs, he did not commit the murders of the Swedish girls, but he did know who had done it. To Van Empel and on the secretly recorded images, Hertogs confessed to the other murders in detail and gavegruesome details about the crimes . Van Empel was not only a childhood friend but had also been in prison with Hertogs and had even helped him escape once. Hendriks, who died in 2015also sent a letter to Stolk, Van Asperen asking why he had not helped him get free again. Hertog’s girlfriend Ingrid never said much more than that Hertogs had to go to his victim in the torture chamber during their lovemaking to silence him. Hertogs always had to ‘return the favor’ for everything Stolk did for him. ‘Stolk wanted oral sex. He gave him that. He was ashamed of it, but it often helped him. In exchange for his services, he was acquitted and he helped him.’ According to Hertogs, Stolk chose him because he knew his file and knew that he used to provide sexual services to men for money in Amsterdam. Hertogs also provided him with child pornography material with boys. When Hertogs committed his first murder, he wanted to turn himself in and told Stolk. He could tell from his reaction that he was very shocked and did not feel like voluntarily committing himself, but he still went to the detention center to report. However, he was turned down there. Then he didn’t dare anymore and he left. According to Hertogs, the last meeting with Stolk was in the courtroom when he was convicted of the three murders. ‘The last thing he saw of Stolk was in the courtroom. He was sitting in the back and nodded meaningfully at me. Like: it’ll be okay. He didn’t meet Stolk again after that. In 1991, the dead body of the 41-year-old pediatrician Joyce Labruyere from Hummelo was found. The detective support team (RBT) of the Nijmegen district police arrested a 39-year-old resident of Den Bosch for this five months later. The man had been suspected of the murder of the pediatrician for some time, but had been untraceable for the police for a long time. Four Arnhem residents had already been arrested in this case. disappeared on Thursday evening, February 21. Joyce Labruyere was supposed to visit family in Hoofddorp, but never arrived. Witnesses said that they had seen her a day later in Hummelo. Her car was found burned out two days later in Ubbergen near Nijmegen, after which her body was found in the Maas a few weeks later. In the weeks that she was missing, money was withdrawn in Oss with her bank card and PIN code. This was also attempted in Arnhem, but the attempts failed there. However, a man and a woman in Arnhem bought stereo equipment and a television for thousands of guilders, which they paid for with checks from Labruyere. The Arnhem residents are suspected of having been involved in these purchases. On 3 June 1997, the court of appeal in Den Bosch acquitted the suspect early. Eleven days earlier, a fifteen-year prison sentence had been demanded, the same sentence that the court in Arnhem imposed on him in 1994. The Supreme Court partially annulled the Arnhem judgment and referred the case to the court in Den Bosch, which acquitted him due to lack of evidence.The suspect is said to have told a criminal friend that he had killed the pediatrician. He was convicted partly on the basis of this man’s testimony. According to the chairman of the court, the Court of Appeal was unable to sufficiently test the reliability of the witness. In cassation, the Supreme Court determined that there were blemishes in the way in which the witness had been heard anonymously because he had allegedly been threatened. Attorney General Mr. A. Franken found that this error had been “repaired” with new hearings of the anonymous witness. She believed that there was sufficient evidence of manslaughter. Lawyer Mr. G. Knoops argued, among other things, that the witness had often contradicted himself and that the reward of 24,000 guilders for the man after the conviction of the man from Den Bosch made the testimony even more unreliable. He asked the court to acquit his client, who had already been in custody for 3.5 years. In 1994, a special police team was set up, the HIK team (Trafficking in Children). The team was initially set up to track down the missing German boy Manuel Schadewald, who had probably ended up in the prostitution circuit in Rotterdam. The HIK team came across an escort club for young boys, managed by the German Lothar G. This G. was the head of a network in the trade and sex with underage boys. Boys were not only sexually abused in his building, but also in a private house in one of the cube houses. In addition, G. often sent children on escort to a client at his address. Boys were smuggled from Poland to the Netherlands with the cooperation of a Dutch top civil servant. A reconstruction based on tapped telephone conversations, official reports and police notes showed how men in the Netherlands order underage boys for sex and how new boys are recruited via friends who are already in the circuit. Lothar G. was sentenced to five and a half years in prison.The team was initially set up to track down the missing German boy Manuel Schadewald, who had probably ended up in the prostitution circuit in Rotterdam. The HIK team came across an escort club for young boys, managed by the German Lothar G. This G. was the head of a network in the trade and sex with underage boys. Boys were not only sexually abused in his building, but also in a private house in one of the cube houses. In addition, G. often sent children on escort to a client at his address. Boys were smuggled from Poland to the Netherlands with the cooperation of a Dutch top civil servant. A reconstruction based on tapped telephone conversations, official reports and police notes showed how men in the Netherlands order underage boys for sex and how new boys are recruited via friends who are already in the circuit. Lothar G. was sentenced to five and a half years in prison.The team was initially set up to track down the missing German boy Manuel Schadewald, who had probably ended up in the prostitution circuit in Rotterdam. The HIK team came across an escort club for young boys, managed by the German Lothar G. This G. was the head of a network in the trade and sex with underage boys. Boys were not only sexually abused in his building, but also in a private house in one of the cube houses. In addition, G. often sent children on escort to a client at his address. Boys were smuggled from Poland to the Netherlands with the cooperation of a Dutch top civil servant. A reconstruction based on tapped telephone conversations, official reports and police notes showed how men in the Netherlands order underage boys for sex and how new boys are recruited via friends who are already in the circuit. Lothar G. was sentenced to five and a half years in prison.
Pedophile network Martijn
During the same period, Vereniging Martijn was also founded . A Dutch association that strived for legal and social acceptance of sexual relations between adults and children. On 27 June 2012, the court in Assen declared the association prohibited and dissolved it at the request of the public prosecutor. On 2 April 2013, the order to dissolve was however annulled by the court of appeal in Leeuwarden on appeal. On 18 April 2014, the Supreme Court in turn annulled the court’s 2013 order on cassation and upheld the order of the court in Assen, which finally banned the association. The pedophile organisation was founded in Hoogeveen in 1982. The original idea came from a man known as ‘Theo’, when Martijn was in prison with him for a sex offence in ‘s-Hertogenbosch. While serving his sentence, he came up with the idea of starting an association or foundation to bring together pedophiles who were experiencing or had experienced the same thing as him, by means of a publication. While still in prison, he started publishing the magazine Martijn (the predecessor of OK magazine, not to be confused with the English-language glossy magazine of the same name). The magazine was put together by three friends in Hoogeveen. After Theo dropped out, a new club was formed by the initiative of someone known as ‘Duif’. This eventually led to the official registration of the association in November 1982. The association was therefore named after the magazine Martijn. Marthijn Uittenbogaard , co-founder and chairman of the Party for Charity, Freedom and Diversity (PNVD) was a board member of the MARTIJN Association for several years. Uittenbogaard has visited the main suspects in the shocking Amsterdam child pornography case several times .of Roberts Miķelsons and Richard van Olfen. Van Olfen was a member of Martijn for a short time and was on the editorial board of the association magazine. Van Olfen was sentenced to 4.5 years, after a demand of 12 years. His husband Mikelsons abused dozens of (very) young children and recorded much of this abuse on camera. Roberts was able to abuse children undisturbed during the three years that he worked at the Hofnarretje daycare center. The court of appeal in Amsterdam sentenced Mikelsons (30) to 19 years in prison and TBS with compulsory treatment for this in April 2013. According to the court, Van Olfen also committed indecent acts with a 15-year-old boy and in one case was complicit in child abuse by his Mikelsons and had child pornography in his possession. The court acquitted Van Olfen of complicity in and complicity in the abuse of a series of children at babysitting addresses. Roberts Mikelsons and Richard van Olfen got married in 2004. The men had met on the internet. Roberts Mikelsons, born in Latvia, was convicted in Germany for distributing child pornography. Van Olfen then brought him to the Netherlands. Mikelsons moved in with him. During the trial it emerged that Mikelsons had mainly used his other half as a vehicle to survive in the Netherlands and to manoeuvre himself into a position that enabled him to systematically abuse children. Mikelsons worked in various daycare centres for several years and acted as a private nanny in his spare time. Roberts had another man abuse a child for payment. The 37-year-old man from Amstelveen has admitted to having paid 50 euros to abuse a baby with him in his home. It had already been announced that Mikelsons had abused children with two other men. In addition to the man from Amstelveen, this was a now deceased Englishman. He is said to have abused four children with Mikelsons. There were encounters with a man from Dinteloord that could have led to abuse. This suspect has since committed suicide. Edwin R., a 39-year-old employee at the Het Hofnarretje daycare center, was also suspected of webcam sex with minors and possession of child pornography. He was conditionally released on March 3, 2011 and ultimately not prosecuted, because the Public Prosecution Service expected that the duration of any prison sentence imposed would be shorter than the time he had spent in pre-trial detention.Mikelsons shared child pornography with a large number of people from all over the world. A considerable number of them have now been arrested by the local authorities. He has now confessed to abusing 87 children. He used some children only once, others were victimized dozens of times. According to the Public Prosecution Service, Mikelsons made child pornography of at least 35 of these children. They can be seen in the hundreds of photo and video files that were found with the suspect. Richard van Olfen (38) actively helped Roberts abuse children. Van Olefen is said to have bought lubricant for Mikelsons and special bags with which he could take it to babysitting addresses and the daycare centers where he worked. He also often took Mikelsons to babysitting addresses, while Van Olfen knew that he would abuse children there. Van Olfen is also said to have helped his wife find work at daycare centers or as a babysitter. He did this, among other things, by hanging up advertisements. He also paid for his wife’s training as a social-pedagogical worker. Van Olfen is also said to have regularly viewed his husband’s child pornography. When Mikelsons invited other men to abuse children, he is said not to have intervened, but to have left their home. The two met in 2001 via a chat site for pedophiles. M. was still living in Latvia at the time, where he is from. Van O. is said to have brought him to the Netherlands after M. was sentenced to a one-year suspended prison sentence in Germany for possession and distribution of child pornography. They then started doing things that M. liked, such as visiting swimming pools to look at children. In March 2021, it was announced that the Public Prosecution Service would prosecute Uittenbogaard for continuing Vereniging MARTIJN, following reports from Stichting Strijd Tegen Abubruik. The website showed that the members mainly focused on sexual relationships and contact with children, which are prohibited by law in the Netherlands and Belgium, among other places. In 2007, photos of Princess Amalia (daughter of Willem Alexander and Maxima) and of Anna and Lucas (the children of Prince Maurits and Princess Marilène) were placed on this website. The parents of these children filed a summary proceeding against this and won the case. In September 2010, the judiciary searched Ad van den Berg’s house, the association’s chairman. He confirmed to a journalist that there was indeed child pornography on his confiscated computers, but he claimed that he had it for scientific purposes. In March 2011, after extensive research, it turned out that a large amount of child pornography had been found. More data carriers were confiscated when Van den Berg was arrested on 29 March 2011. On 4 October 2011, during the trial against Van den Berg, a four-year prison sentence was demanded, of which eight months conditional with a probation period of five years. He is said to have had 150,000 photos and 7,500 videos of child pornography in his possession, of which 12,000 photos featured himself. The public prosecutor called the photos “very shocking”. On 18 October 2011, the court sentenced him to three years in prison, of which six months conditional. On appeal, the summons was strangely enough partially declared null and void because the charges were insufficiently factually described. The court of appeal also found that the possession of child pornography was proven for a shorter period than the court. The sentence was therefore converted into two years in prison. The Ministry of Security and Justice ruled on 18 June 2011 that the activities of the association are not punishable under Dutch law. Although individual members of the association are suspected of, or have been convicted of, criminal offences, the criminal acts were not committed in the context of work for the association. Therefore, there was no possibility to prosecute, ban or dissolve the association. RTL Nieuws subsequently revealed that eight (former) board members had been convicted of sexual offences. After the summer recess of 2011, the Lower House debated a ban on the association, following a citizens’ initiative by Henk Bres. At the end of 2011, the Public Prosecution Service requested the civil court to ban the Martijn association. On 27 June 2012, these proceedings resulted in the Martijn association being banned by the court in Assen. The judge found that Martijn glorifies sexual relations between adults and children, and considered this a fundamental violation of the rights of the child. On 3 June 2012, Vereniging Martijn announced through its lawyer Bart Swier that it wanted to appeal. By order of 2 April 2013, the Arnhem-Leeuwarden Court of Appeal annulled the order of the Assen District Court and rejected the Public Prosecution Service’s request to dissolve the association. On 5 March 2014, the Advocate General published an advice to the Supreme Court to ban the association after all. The Supreme Court adopted this advice in its ruling on 18 April. Ad van den Berg, Marthijn Uitenbogaard, Norbert de Jonge, Edward Brongersma, PvdA member of the Senate Anton Dautzenberg and preacher Hans Visser were members of the association. Robert Miķelsons’ prison sentence has ended. He was transferred to a TBS clinic in 2023 without the parents of the victims being informed by the Public Prosecution Service. On 7 July 2025, there will be a hearing in which the judge will decide on a possible extension of the TBS treatment of the sex offender. In April 2013, the court of appeal sentenced M. to a prison sentence of nineteen years and TBS with compulsory treatment for sexually abusing dozens of very young children. He falls under the old conditional release scheme, which allowed him to start his TBS treatment after serving two-thirds of his sentence. Every two years, a judge assesses the necessity of the treatment and whether it should take place under compulsory treatment. There is no maximum period of stay in a TBS clinic.
The bottom line is that Robert Mikelson has been in TBS for two years, without the outside world knowing about it. The Public Prosecution Service seems to realize that they made a mistake with this. There is a good chance that this sex offender will appear in public for the first time on July 7, in the courtroom where a judge will rule on the extension of his treatment.
The Kincora Scandal
There have been allegations that the abuse at Kincora, which closed in 1980, was covered up with the connivance of the intelligence services. There has been pressure for it to be considered by the wider right-wing inquiry set up by Theresa May. But despite pressure from MPs and victims of the paedophile ring that operated there, she refused to add Kincora to the inquiry’s remit. For decades, it has been alleged that the intelligence services allowed the sexual abuse of children at Kincora to be carried out in order to blackmail senior politicians and members of the establishment during the Troubles of the 1970s. Northern Ireland’s Historical Institutional Abuse Inquiry, headed by Sir Anthony Hart, is investigating the allegations but does not have the same powers as the Goddard inquiry. Kincora abuse victim Richard Kerr alleges he was abused at several key locations by “very powerful people” with links to an alleged VIP paedophile ring. Kerr, who was a victim of abuse at the Kincora Boys’ Home in Belfast, claims he was also attacked at the luxury Dolphin Square apartment complex and the Elm Guest House, both in London. It is believed to be the first time the three locations have been linked in connection with allegations of past sexual abuse by influential figures in Westminster. Mr Kerr was abused in Kincora in the 1970s and claims he and two other boys were specially chosen to be trafficked to London in 1977 and sexually abused by men. Both other men have since committed suicide, Kerr told Channel 4 News. He claims the VIP paedophile ring did exist and that he was abused in London by “men who had control and power over others”. He claims some of them were politicians. His most violent experience is said to have taken place at the Elm Guest House in Barnes, south London. He claims he was tied up with his hands behind his back while men took photographs. When police raided the guest house in 1981, officers reportedly found whips, chains and ropes. Mr Kerr also claimed he was taken to Dolphin Square, an apartment block near Parliament House, where Scotland Yard is now investigating alleged child abuse and murder. Richard Kerr told Channel 4 News that police had tried to stop him from giving evidence at a trial in which three members of staff were jailed. In 1981, three senior Kincora staff – Joseph Mains, Raymond Semple and William McGrath – were jailed for abusing 11 boys. Mr Kerr told Channel 4 News that “two plainclothes officers” visited him before the trial. He said: “They came to my house and took things out of my drawers, and they put me in a car and they took me to the police station and they questioned me, put me in a cell for seven hours and when they took me out of the cell they made it clear to me that I was not to talk about this and that I was lying and not to tell lies, and I felt like they were giving me a warning. The case was coming up… and they didn’t want me to come to the trial.” The Elm Guest House was a hotel in Rocks Lane. A list compiled by convicted fraudster Chris Fay accused several prominent British men of sexual and child abuse at the Guest House in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Labour MP Tom Watson , who had heard evidence from Carl Beech , suggested in a statement to the House of Commons in October 2012 that a paedophile ring that existed at the time may have taken children to parties in the private home. In 2014 and 2015, allegations against several leading politicians of the time, most of whom are now deceased, were made public in the British press. Many of these claims were investigated and discredited in an episode of the BBC current affairs programme Panorama in October 2015.
Ritual abuse
Psychologist Aline Terpstra encountered satanic and sadistic ritual abuse in her client who was horribly abused and mistreated within a network . Humiliation and devil worship were part of the abuse. For example, she was horribly abused and mistreated in hotel rooms at meetings and gatherings of high -ranking people – nationally and internationally. And at such meetings she was used to make high-ranking people susceptible to blackmail. In addition, it becomes clear how the cult used dissociated personality parts in teenage years to sexually seduce high-ranking people at luxurious parties where alcohol and drugs are abundantly present, and to make them susceptible to blackmail. VPRO broadcast Argos paid attention to the issue and in a short time already came up with 140 respondents who told about organised ritual abuse. Considering that Argos had limited time and that the fear of speaking out among victims is enormous, the number of actual victims could be many times higher. In the Lower House, two motions were submitted by MPs Van den Berge, Van Nispen and Kuijken to conduct further research. On 25 March 2021, Minister Grapperhaus, without any consultation with victim interest groups, established the Hendriks Commission , consisting of chairman Mr Hendriks and member Mrs Slotboom. The commission was under the full supervision of the Minister of Justice, as laid down in the establishment decree .
The commission stated that it is “undisputed” that organised and violent abuse of minors exists. “Regardless of whether the victims’ stories are entirely true, it is likely that they are victims of intrusive and traumatic experiences.” It is difficult for scientists and the commission to estimate the scale on which it occurs. Hendriks emphasises that the commission has not sought to establish the truth. According to him, that is the task of the police and the judiciary, and that is difficult enough in morals cases. And that is again evident from the failure to investigate the telephone of Donny M. who murdered 9-year-old Gino. His death and the circumstances caused a wave of indignation and grief throughout the Netherlands.
Ritual abuse Bodegraven
For months, Micha Kat , Wouter Raatgever and Joost Knevel reported satanic child abuse in Bodegraven by name . Former police officer Alice Besselink from Doetinchem also added a new chapter and repeated Knevel’s accusations. In September 2024, the interim relief judge prohibited the woman from making any further statements about the existence of a satanic pedophile network in the municipality of Bodegraven-Reeuwijk. She must also remove all previous statements about this from websites, social media and online platforms. If the woman does not comply with these prohibitions, she will be given a penalty of 5 thousand euros per violation, increasing to a total of 400 thousand euros. If, after exceeding the latter amount, she still does not comply with the prohibition and has not removed the statements, she can be taken into custody for up to 60 days. From 3 April 2023, the woman has been posting messages on social media in which she repeats statements made by others about, among other things, child murders by a satanic paedophile network in the municipality of Bodegraven-Reeuwijk. On 8 August 2024, the municipality ordered her to cease and deleting her statements, but she ignored this and did so in even more violent terms. The municipality of Bodegraven – Reeuwijk asked the court to ban all statements. There was no evidence whatsoever for the existence of a satanic paedophile network, which the woman claims is widespread. The content of the woman’s statements about this was said to be very threatening and damaging to residents and employees of the municipality and therefore unlawful. This also applies to the extent that her statements were directed against the municipality’s lawyer. The woman was arrested again on 3 October on suspicion of incitement and threats. Her theory led to death threats against Mark Rutte, RIVM top man Jaap van Dissel and a general practitioner. Conspiracy theorist Micha Kat also delved deeper into the story. And he too was convicted for this last year . The statements led to children’s graves at a cemetery in Bodegraven being flooded with flowers in 2020, to the dismay of relatives, residents and the municipality of Bodegraven-Reeuwijk. The cemetery of the Ichthuskerk had to be secured due to nuisance.
Cornelis den Dekker (38), a member of the Dutch Reformed Church in that city, was sentenced to six years and six months in June 2025 for sexual abuse of family members. He is in prison for sexual abuse of minors and sharing child pornography. He came into contact with his victims through churches of which he was a member. Cornelis den Dekker was active in the Zuidhoven Church in Dordrecht between 2003 and 2018. He did youth work there and supervised children’s camps. He also worked in the Dordrecht sports center Pentagon, which has since closed. No reports of sexual abuse have been filed by the church or Pentagon. In 2019, Den Dekker was also sentenced to thirty hours of community service for indecent acts with an 11-year-old girl. He then moved to Bodegraven, where he served as a deacon on the church council of the Ichtus Church without any problems until shortly before his arrest.
He not only possessed child and animal pornography, but also abused three minors. The man had twelve thousand images, each showing a child being abused. He was sentenced to 6.5 years in prison and TBS with compulsory treatment and must pay damages to two of his victims. The Public Prosecution Service had demanded nine years and TBS. The court in The Hague found it proven that the man abused three children in his family circle. This happened between 2002 and 2012. The children were six, eleven and nine years younger than the man himself. He himself was also abused by an uncle from the age of nine. He was also still a minor at the time of some of the abuse. It started when he was twelve and the youngest victim was six. ‘This sexual abuse occurred at home or on holiday, places where the victims felt safe and familiar’, according to the court. ‘He seriously abused the trust that can be taken for granted within a family’, the court wrote in its verdict. ‘The court also found it particularly worrying that the suspect also spoke about abusing his two daughters in his online communications. Such statements shed a disturbing light on his thought patterns and boundaries. Two weeks ago, during the substantive hearing of his case, the man swore that his daughters were safe, but that did not allay the court’s concerns. The court assessed the chat groups as criminal organizations and convicted the man for membership thereof and for possession of the images. ‘In the production of child pornography, children are sexually abused and exploited, with all the emotional and physical harmful consequences for them’, the court said.
They could be haunted by the consequences of the distribution of the images for a long time, because it is virtually impossible to remove an image or video that has been placed on the internet. ‘The suspect has contributed to the demand for child pornography through his actions and thus to the maintenance of that abuse and exploitation of minors’, the verdict states. After the man was arrested and his chat groups were dismantled, other men were arrested elsewhere in the Netherlands, France and the United States for possession of images of child abuse. In its verdict, the court takes into account that the man was a minor during some of the acts and that experts consider him to have diminished responsibility. This results in a lower sentence than the Public Prosecution Service had demanded. In addition, the court found it necessary for the man to be treated in a clinic for his paedophile disorder, because previous attempts to achieve outpatient treatment had come to nothing. The compensation that he has to pay is, however, considerably lower than what the victims had requested.
Den Dekker abused the children in his environment. With the youngest, it started when the victim was four years old. With the other two, it started when they were six and ten. The abuse took place between 2002 and 2012. ‘He gave them ‘sex lessons’, but soon after that he attacked his innocent prey like a predator and did his thing in a sophisticated way when they were home alone’, the public prosecutor explained. The suspect took the children into the shower or lay down with them on the bed. It also happened once during a camping holiday in a tent. Part of the abuse took place when the suspect himself was still a minor. In addition, he was also abused as a child by an uncle, but the Public Prosecution Service did not consider that to be a mitigating circumstance.
The man was also the founder of three chat groups on the internet, with names such as NL-Young and Incest Youth Experience. He is therefore also being prosecuted for membership of a criminal organization, because according to the Public Prosecution Service he distributed material with child abuse and animal pornography in an organized manner. In those chats he bragged about what he had done with the children earlier in his life. He also posted a photo of the back of his young, dressed daughter in a group with the text ‘let’s squirt’.
When the court showed the photo, Den Dekker burst into tears. ‘I don’t know what possessed me. I find it disgusting and yet I did it.’ The chairman wondered how safe the suspect’s children are. Den D. swore that they are safe. Yet in one of the chats he went along with the fantasy of another man who wanted to drug and abuse the suspect’s daughters. ‘Then she had a nice dream’, the man wrote on the other end. Den D. responded with ‘nice plan’. The court therefore wondered why she should believe that the children are safe with their father. ‘Because I don’t want anything to happen to them’, said the suspect. ‘I understand that it is difficult to reconcile, but I don’t want to be that kind of father.’
The three then young victims of the abuse are now adults. One of the victims of the sexual abuse had a statement read out by his lawyer. ‘Until October last year, when I was questioned by the police, I could not share with anyone what had happened in my youth. I carried it alone for years. I felt sad and lonely. No one knew what was going on inside me,’ according to the statement.
‘Even though I did nothing wrong, I’ve always carried a sense of shame. Shame that this happened to me. Shame that I couldn’t stop it, and shame that I kept it quiet.’
‘I didn’t talk about it because I was aware of how much grief I would cause everyone. There was the fear that I wouldn’t be believed,’ the victim said. ‘What happened hurts a lot, but what hurts me at least as much is that you talk about it openly and proudly online. Experts have determined that Den D. has diminished responsibility and suffers from a pedophile disorder. He should be treated for that.
The suspect himself also wants this. He had already wanted to be treated when he was ten. ‘After that with my uncle, I should have come in and said that that was not normal.’ The Public Prosecution Service demanded that the suspect be given TBS with compulsory treatment. The Public Prosecution Service finds it aggravating that the man had previously been convicted of a sexual offence and that he was still on probation when he started downloading the child pornography. At the end of 2018, the thirty-year-old became a member of the Dutch Reformed Ichthus Church in Bodegraven. He was arrested in July 2024. He has been in pre-trial detention since then. He was a deacon in that church until a month before his arrest.On January 7, 2025, he appeared in court as a member of the Reformed Ichthus Church at a pro forma hearing at the court in The Hague. The suspect has made more victims in the past. This possibly happened when he worked as a sports trainer at the climbing club in the Pentagon sports center in Dordrecht, in the period 2003 to the end of 2019. In 2019, he was given a community service order because, fifteen years earlier, he had babysat a young girl. The indecent assault took place in 2004 in Dordrecht, when Coen den Dekker, as a seventeen-year-old, babysat a ten-year-old girl from his church. It was not until 2017 that the victim went to the police. Two years later, a trial followed in which the suspect was found guilty of indecent assault with the girl. According to the judge, the suspect abused the trust placed in him at the time. Because the man was seventeen at the time, he was tried under juvenile criminal law. The judge imposed a community service order of thirty hours. Court documents show that the ten-year-old girl told her father the morning after the indecent act that the babysitter had entered her bedroom and ’that something had happened that wasn’t supposed to happen.’ The investigation shows that the suspect frequently chatted about (physical) sexual contact with minors. In the period from 2003 to November 2018, he was also affiliated with the Zuidhoven Church in Dordrecht, where he supervised children’s camps. He was also a member of the Ichthus Church in Bodegraven, from November 2018 to July 2024. The Child Pornography and Child Sex Tourism Team (TBKK) of the National Investigation and Intervention Unit conducted an investigation into the sharing of child pornography on encrypted chat apps in the summer of 2024. This was done under the supervision of the National Public Prosecution Service. The man stood out because he shared images of sexual abuse of (very) young children in various groups. In the chats, the suspect frequently spoke about the years of sexual abuse of minors that he is said to have committed, with both boys and girls. The man was arrested on July 26, 2024. Because the police suspected that there would be more victims, people who recognized themselves in these specific circumstances or this situation were asked to contact the police via schwaan.lo@politie.nl (‘Schwaan’ is the name of the investigation). It is not yet clear to what extent the cases are related, but it is certain that there is a connection with the cemetery . Behind the alleged pedophile network in Bodegraven lies the idea of a shadowy elite that smuggles underage victims worldwide. This belief is central to the popular QAnon movement that emerged in the US in 2017. QAnon started with the theory that Donald Trump was fighting a satanic, pedophile elite sect.The Bodegraven conspiracy revolved around a satanic pedophile cult, operating from a playgroup and nursery school. The claims came from Joost Knevel, himself a former resident of the village. In March 2020, Joost Knevel, who has lived in Spain for several years, sent an email to Martin Vrijland. In it, he claimed to have recalled memories of murder and satanic abuse during his youth in the eighties. Joost K. also claimed to have been a victim of MK-ULTRA.
Micha Kat (1963) studied Classical Language and Literature at the UVA in Amsterdam and started his journalistic career as a freelancer at NRC Handelsblad and De Telegraaf. He then wrote for various legal journals: Het Advocatenblad, Amice, Management Team and Legal Week. He wrote four books: Lux, libertas en leugens (2004), Topadvocatuur (2004), Boekhoudfraude (together with Pieter Lakeman – 2010) and De Demmink doofpot (together with Jan Poot – 2010). Kat was also behind the websites: Schipholwanbeleid.nl (Chipshol case), De Demmink doofpot, Klokkenluideronline.nl, Revolutionaironline and the Red Pill Journal (Bodegraven case). https://www.daretobegrey.com/verhalen/satan-in-de-lage-landen
Cruise ship employee filmed guests
A 34-year-old cruise ship employee secretly filmed guests in their rooms. He went so far as to hide under beds. He also placed cameras in bathrooms. The employee is said to have filmed several guests on the Royal Caribbean cruise ship Symphone of the Seas. The man had been working on board the cruise ship since December 2023. He cleaned rooms and one of his tasks was, for example, to put clean towels in rooms. During his work, he hid under beds to film guests and also placed cameras in bathrooms. He later admitted that he mainly targeted girls around 16 years old. The youngest victim he filmed was 10 years old. Royal Caribbean fired the man immediately after the discovery. The police have seized a phone, camera, Apple Watch and hard drive. Images on the hard drive are said to be evidence of his actions, prosecutors say. He is charged with the production and possession of child pornography.
Childcare worker in Australia abused more than 60 children
A man who worked in childcare for years and abused more than 60 children has been convicted in Australia. His victims were between the ages of 1 and 7. He has been sentenced to life in prison. The suspect, 47-year-old Ashley Paul Griffith, admitted to 307 offences in court in the Australian city of Brisbane. He abused a total of 65 children in 11 different nurseries in the Australian state of Queensland between 2003 and 2022. He also abused four children in the Italian city of Pisa. He will not be eligible for parole for the next 27 years. Griffith must also stand trial for abusing an unknown number of children in the Australian state of New South Wales. The Australian was arrested in 2022. Detectives had come across thousands of photos and videos of the abuse. The videos and photos had been uploaded to the dark web, but no faces were visible on them. Police eventually tracked him down because the footage repeatedly showed the same bedding, which was also used in childcare facilities in Queensland.
Teacher assistant at Mondomijn childcare centre in the Brandevoort district of Helmond
The 25-year-old man from Helmond, who was arrested on Wednesday 18 September 2024 in a sex case, is suspected of sexually abusing children under the age of twelve. The suspect has made a largely confession statement. The police and the Public Prosecution Service (OM) assume that there are 20 victims. There are currently no indications that there are more victims. The abuse is said to have taken place between 2018 and 2024. Until recently, the man worked as a teacher assistant at a primary school in his hometown. Images of the abuse, which took place at school and at several childcare addresses, were found on the suspect’s telephone, among other things. Because these images were found, the man is also suspected of producing and possessing child pornography. The suspect is still in custody. The first pro forma hearing in this case will take place on Wednesday 4 December. The case will not yet be dealt with in substance. The police received a report that he had sexually abused an underage girl. Several parents have reported the teacher assistant. In the investigation, USB sticks and hard drives were seized. The man had been working there for years with children between the ages of 7 and 12. The case is said to have come to light after a student told her what she had seen at home. It was previously reported that he had been suspended from primary school due to inappropriate behavior, now that has changed to sexual abuse.
Sect Lev Tahor
Three senior leaders of the Lev Tahor extremist religious sect have been sentenced to federal prison terms for masterminding a plan to kidnap a 14-year-old girl and a 12-year-old boy from their mother in Woodridge, Sullivan County. The men, 34-year-old Yakov Weingarten, 28-year-old Shmiel Weingarten and 36-year-old Yoil Weingarten, then smuggled the children across the U.S. border into Mexico, where they reunited the girl with her adult “husband” so he could continue his illicit sexual relationship with her. Yakov and Shmiel Weingarten were each sentenced to 14 years in federal prison, while Yoil Weingarten was sentenced to 12 years. Lev Tahor had a headquarters in Guatemala. The arrested sect leader goes by several names. He calls himself ‘Yakow Weingarten’, but also ‘Yakev Nuchem Wingarten’, just like ‘Yaakov Weingarten’ or ‘Yankev Nuchem Weingarten’. According to The Times of Israel, he also used ‘Weinstein’ as a name. According to the authorities, the man was born in Belgium and has Belgian nationality, but is also naturalized in Guatemala and the United States. It was at the request of the US that the police raided a farm in El Amatillo in Guatemala, not far from the border with El Salvador and Nicaragua. The sect leader is suspected of conspiracy and international child abduction, among other things. Weingarten was the leader of the sect that probably had several hundred members. The sect is also called ’the Jewish Taliban’, because women and girls from the age of 3 are forced to wear long, completely black robes. The sect was founded in Jerusalem in the 1980s by the now deceased Rabbi Shlomo Helbrans. The group spent some time in Canada, but then moved to Mexico and San Juan, Guatemala. However, the sect had to relocate several times after conflicts with the local population. For example, Catholic residents of San Juan complained that they tried to convert them and that they went bathing naked in the lake. The group already received international attention in 2018 after the kidnapping of two children from the American state of New York. Their mother, herself a daughter of founder Shlomo Helbrans, had fled the sect because her 13-year-old daughter was forced to marry a much older man.
Teacher rapes a six-year-old girl
A 35-year-old teacher from Arnhem was arrested in October 2024 on suspicion of raping a six-year-old girl and making and distributing images of the abuse has confessed. According to his lawyer, his client is doing very badly and was not present at the hearing. The man is said to be suicidal. The lawyer requested the court to have the suspect examined by a psychiatrist. The man is suspected of raping a girl whose care was entrusted to him. The abuse is said to have started when the victim was five years old and is said to have taken place both in Arnhem and on Crete. The man is also suspected of making, possessing and distributing images of child sexual abuse of the victim. Until his arrest in early October, the suspect worked as a primary school teacher in Arnhem. The investigation has now shown that things have also happened within the school environment that are transgressive and/or punishable,” the Public Prosecution Service reported . It is said to involve photographing, filming or both a number of female former employees and three children. “The people in the images are all dressed.” The suspect has distributed some of the images. The police have informed the former employees and the parents of the children.
HIV through medical experiments
In the UK, 30,000 people and their loved ones have been abused in medical experiments. People with haemophilia A have a deficiency of a clotting agent known as factor VIII. People with haemophilia B do not have enough factor IX. In the 1970s, a new treatment was developed to replace the missing clotting agents, made from donated human blood plasma. But entire batches of the replacement factor VIII and IX products were contaminated with deadly viruses. The Infected Blood Inquiry estimates that 1,250 people with bleeding disorders in the UK developed both HIV and hepatitis C as a result, including 380 children. About two-thirds later died of AIDS-related illnesses. Some infected people inadvertently passed HIV on to their partners. Another 2,400 to 5,000 people developed hepatitis C themselves, which can cause cirrhosis and liver cancer. Calculating the exact number of people infected with Hepatitis C is difficult, partly because it can take decades for symptoms to appear.
Children with haemophilia and other blood clotting disorders were subjected to deadly medical experiments in Britain in the 1970s and 1980s. Children were unwillingly enrolled in clinical trials, often without parental consent. Most of them became infected with HIV or hepatitis C as a result of treatment with blood products that doctors knew could be fatal. At Treloar College, a boarding school for boys with haemophilia in Hampshire, 75 of the 122 pupils who attended between 1974 and 1987 died as a result of HIV or hepatitis C infection. These children were just some of the victims of the contaminated blood scandal, the worst medical scandal in the history of the NHS. HIV and/or hepatitis C is a virus that can cause liver cancer. Some of the children had blood disorders and were treated with clotting agents made from pooled plasma from tens of thousands of donors, often purchased in the US, where the use of high-risk donors was known and routine. The independent inquiry into the contaminated blood scandal estimated that 1,250 people contracted both HIV and hepatitis C from these drugs, and between 2,400 and 5,000 people contracted hepatitis C alone. Others contracted the viruses after receiving blood transfusions following surgery or childbirth; it is believed that up to 100 people have been infected with HIV in this way, and 27,000 with hepatitis C. Some 2,900 people have died so far; but the terrible legacy of the scandal continues to unfold with each passing year; it is now estimated that one person dies every four days . Of those infected with HIV, 380 were children, more than half of whom have died from AIDS-related illnesses so far .
Some of the children infected, such as those at Treleor College, were subjected to dangerous medical experiments and extensive clinical trials by doctors without parental consent, in which they were repeatedly injected with three to four times the amount of a blood-clotting agent that would normally be administered, to see if this reduced the amount of bleeding they experienced. Minister after minister denied the requests for a public inquiry; it was not until 2017 that Prime Minister Theresa May announced that an inquiry would be held, chaired by Sir Brian Langstaff. But aware that so many living victims were on ‘borrowed time’ – dying as a result of government bankruptcies – he published an interim report in April 2023 setting out how a compensation scheme would work so that it could be implemented without delay. A year later, it is estimated that almost a hundred more victims have died. Yet no compensation has been paid, apart from an interim payment of £100,000 in October 2022, which was paid only to living victims and the relatives of those who died. Two-thirds of the relatives – including parents who lost their children or people who were orphaned as young children – have not yet received any compensation.
Sexual exploitation of 1,400 girls from nursing homes by Pakistani group
In Rotherham, organised sexual abuse of girls in the town of Rotherham, South Yorkshire, northern England, took place with the knowledge of the government for ten years from the late 1980s to 2013. Local authorities took no action. Investigator Angie Heal, who was hired by local officials and alerted them to the child exploitation that took place between 2002 and 2007, has since described it as the “biggest child protection scandal in British history”, with a report estimating that 1,400 girls, mainly from care homes, were abused by “grooming gangs” between 1997 and 2013. Evidence of the abuse first came to light in the early 1990s, when care home managers investigated reports that children in their care were being picked up by taxi drivers. [12] From at least 2001, multiple reports gave names of alleged perpetrators, several from one family, to the police and Rotherham City Council. The first group conviction occurred in 2010, when five British-Muslim Pakistani men were convicted of sexual offences against girls aged 12 to 16. From January 2011, Andrew Norfolk of The Times pressed the issue, reporting in 2012 that the abuse was widespread in the town and that the police and council had known about it for over a decade. The Times articles, together with the 2012 trial of the Rochdale child abuse ring, prompted the House of Commons Home Affairs Select Committee to hold hearings. Following this and other Norfolk articles, Rotherham City Council commissioned an independent inquiry, led by Alexis Jay. In August 2014, Jay’s report concluded that an estimated 1,400 children had been sexually abused in Rotherham between 1997 and 2013, predominantly by British-Pakistani Muslim men. The victims were almost all white, but British Asian girls in Rotherham also experienced various forms of sexual harassment and assault. Social isolation and fear of dishonour may have prevented Asian victims from coming forward. One carer who worked in children’s homes from 2003 to 2007 told the BBC that men would come almost “nightly” to pick up girls, who would escape by various means and then usually be taken away in taxis. The abuse included gang rape, forcing children to watch rape, dousing children with petrol and threatening to set them on fire, threatening to rape their mothers and younger sisters, and trafficking children to other towns. There were pregnancies (one at the age of 12), terminations, miscarriages, babies being raised by their mothers, as well as babies being taken away.The failure to tackle the abuse was attributed to a combination of factors relating to race, class, religion and gender: fears that the ethnicity of the perpetrators would lead to accusations of racism; disparaging and sexist attitudes towards the victims, who were predominantly working-class; the lack of a child-centred focus; the desire to protect the city’s reputation; and a lack of training and resources. Ella Hill, a survivor of the Rotherham Grooming Gang scandal, described the severe racist abuse she faced at the hands of her attackers: “As a teenager I was taken to various houses and flats above takeaways in the north of England where I was beaten, tortured and raped over 100 times. I was called a ‘white slave’ and a ‘white prick’ as they beat me. The chief executive of Rotherham Council, the director of children’s services and the chief constable of South Yorkshire Police all resigned. The Independent Police Complaints Commission and the National Crime Agency both launched investigations, the latter of which was expected to last eight years. The government appointed Louise Casey to inspect Rotherham Council. The Casey Report, published in January 2015, concluded that the council had a bullying, sexist culture of hiding information and silencing whistleblowers; it was “not fit for purpose”. In February 2015, the government the council’s elected officials through a team of five commissioners. As a result of new police investigations, 19 men and two women were convicted in 2016 and 2017 of sexual offences in the town dating back to the late 1980s; one of the ringleaders was sentenced to 35 years in prison. Around 11.9 per cent of Rotherham’s population were from black and minority ethnic backgrounds. According to one victim, the perpetrators favoured children aged 12 to 14. As they got older, the group lost interest and the child was expected to provide younger children in return for continued access to the group, which the child came to rely on for drugs, alcohol, a social life, “affection” or even a home. The vast majority of people convicted of child sexual exploitation in Rotherham since Operation Central in 2010 have been of Pakistani descent, and around 80 per cent of those charged are also of Pakistani descent, with the remainder being a mix of white British and other groups such as Roma. The most common The age for convicts is 30 to 40 years.the fear that the ethnicity of the perpetrators would lead to accusations of racism; disparaging and sexist attitudes towards the victims, who were mainly working-class; the lack of a child-centred focus; the desire to protect the city’s reputation; and a lack of training and resources. Ella Hill, a survivor of the Rotherham Grooming Gang scandal, described the severe racist abuse she faced at the hands of her attackers: “As a teenager I was taken to various houses and flats above takeaways in the north of England where I was beaten, tortured and raped over 100 times. I was called a ‘white slave’ and a ‘white prick’ as they beat me. The chief executive of Rotherham Council, the director of children’s services and the chief constable of South Yorkshire Police all resigned. The Independent Police Complaints Commission and the National Crime Agency both launched investigations, the latter of which was expected to last eight years. The government appointed Louise Casey to inspect Rotherham Council. The Casey Report, published in January 2015, concluded that the council had a bullying, sexist culture of hiding information and silencing whistleblowers; it was “not fit for purpose”. In February 2015, the government the council’s elected officials through a team of five commissioners. As a result of new police investigations, 19 men and two women were convicted in 2016 and 2017 of sexual offences in the town dating back to the late 1980s; one of the ringleaders was sentenced to 35 years in prison. Around 11.9 per cent of Rotherham’s population were from black and minority ethnic backgrounds. According to one victim, the perpetrators favoured children aged 12 to 14. As they got older, the group lost interest and the child was expected to provide younger children in return for continued access to the group, which the child came to rely on for drugs, alcohol, a social life, “affection” or even a home. The vast majority of people convicted of child sexual exploitation in Rotherham since Operation Central in 2010 have been of Pakistani descent, and around 80 per cent of those charged are also of Pakistani descent, with the remainder being a mix of white British and other groups such as Roma. The most common The age for convicts is 30 to 40 years.the fear that the ethnicity of the perpetrators would lead to accusations of racism; disparaging and sexist attitudes towards the victims, who were mainly working-class; the lack of a child-centred focus; the desire to protect the city’s reputation; and a lack of training and resources. Ella Hill, a survivor of the Rotherham Grooming Gang scandal, described the severe racist abuse she faced at the hands of her attackers: “As a teenager I was taken to various houses and flats above takeaways in the north of England where I was beaten, tortured and raped over 100 times. I was called a ‘white slave’ and a ‘white prick’ as they beat me. The chief executive of Rotherham Council, the director of children’s services and the chief constable of South Yorkshire Police all resigned. The Independent Police Complaints Commission and the National Crime Agency both launched investigations, the latter of which was expected to last eight years. The government appointed Louise Casey to inspect Rotherham Council. The Casey Report, published in January 2015, concluded that the council had a bullying, sexist culture of hiding information and silencing whistleblowers; it was “not fit for purpose”. In February 2015, the government the council’s elected officials through a team of five commissioners. As a result of new police investigations, 19 men and two women were convicted in 2016 and 2017 of sexual offences in the town dating back to the late 1980s; one of the ringleaders was sentenced to 35 years in prison. Around 11.9 per cent of Rotherham’s population were from black and minority ethnic backgrounds. According to one victim, the perpetrators favoured children aged 12 to 14. As they got older, the group lost interest and the child was expected to provide younger children in return for continued access to the group, which the child came to rely on for drugs, alcohol, a social life, “affection” or even a home. The vast majority of people convicted of child sexual exploitation in Rotherham since Operation Central in 2010 have been of Pakistani descent, and around 80 per cent of those charged are also of Pakistani descent, with the remainder being a mix of white British and other groups such as Roma. The most common The age for convicts is 30 to 40 years.described the severe racist abuse she faced at the hands of her attackers: “As a teenager I was taken to various houses and flats above takeaways in the north of England where I was beaten, tortured and raped over 100 times. I was called a ‘white slave’ and a ‘white prick’ as they beat me. The chief executive of Rotherham Council, the director of children’s services and the chief constable of South Yorkshire Police all resigned. The Independent Police Complaints Commission and the National Crime Agency both launched investigations, the latter of which was expected to last eight years. The government appointed Louise Casey to inspect Rotherham Council. The Casey Report, published in January 2015, concluded that the council had a bullying, sexist culture of hiding information and silencing whistleblowers; it was “not fit for purpose”. In February 2015, the government replaced the council’s elected officials with a team of five commissioners. As a result New police investigations in 2016 and 2017 saw 19 men and two women convicted of sex crimes in the town dating back to the late 1980s; one of the ringleaders was sentenced to 35 years in prison. Around 11.9 per cent of Rotherham’s population were from black and minority ethnic backgrounds. According to one victim, the perpetrators favoured children aged 12 to 14. As they got older, the group lost interest and the child was expected to provide younger children in return for continued access to the group, which the child came to rely on for drugs, alcohol, a social life, “affection” or even a home. The vast majority of people convicted of child sexual exploitation in Rotherham since Operation Central in 2010 have been of Pakistani descent, with around 80 per cent of those charged also being of Pakistani descent, while the remainder are a mix of white British and other groups such as Roma. The most common age for convictions is 30 to 40.described the severe racist abuse she faced at the hands of her attackers: “As a teenager I was taken to various houses and flats above takeaways in the north of England where I was beaten, tortured and raped over 100 times. I was called a ‘white slave’ and a ‘white prick’ as they beat me. The chief executive of Rotherham Council, the director of children’s services and the chief constable of South Yorkshire Police all resigned. The Independent Police Complaints Commission and the National Crime Agency both launched investigations, the latter of which was expected to last eight years. The government appointed Louise Casey to inspect Rotherham Council. The Casey Report, published in January 2015, concluded that the council had a bullying, sexist culture of hiding information and silencing whistleblowers; it was “not fit for purpose”. In February 2015, the government replaced the council’s elected officials with a team of five commissioners. As a result New police investigations in 2016 and 2017 saw 19 men and two women convicted of sex crimes in the town dating back to the late 1980s; one of the ringleaders was sentenced to 35 years in prison. Around 11.9 per cent of Rotherham’s population were from black and minority ethnic backgrounds. According to one victim, the perpetrators favoured children aged 12 to 14. As they got older, the group lost interest and the child was expected to provide younger children in return for continued access to the group, which the child came to rely on for drugs, alcohol, a social life, “affection” or even a home. The vast majority of people convicted of child sexual exploitation in Rotherham since Operation Central in 2010 have been of Pakistani descent, with around 80 per cent of those charged also being of Pakistani descent, while the remainder are a mix of white British and other groups such as Roma. The most common age for convictions is 30 to 40.The Casey Report, published in January 2015, found that the council had a bullying, sexist culture of hiding information and silencing whistleblowers; it was “not fit for purpose”. In February 2015, the government replaced the council’s elected officials with a team of five commissioners. As a result of new police investigations, 19 men and two women were convicted in 2016 and 2017 of sexual offences in the town dating back to the late 1980s; one of the ringleaders was sentenced to 35 years in prison. About 11.9 per cent of Rotherham’s population were from black and minority ethnic backgrounds. According to one victim, the perpetrators favoured children aged 12 to 14. As they got older, the group lost interest and the child was expected to provide younger children in return for continued access to the group, on which the child came to rely for drugs, alcohol, a social life, “affection” or even a home. The vast majority of people convicted of child sexual exploitation in Rotherham since Operation Central in 2010 have been of Pakistani origin, and around 80 per cent of those charged are also of Pakistani origin, with the remainder being a mix of white British and other groups such as Roma. The most common age for those convicted is 30 to 40.The Casey Report, published in January 2015, found that the council had a bullying, sexist culture of hiding information and silencing whistleblowers; it was “not fit for purpose”. In February 2015, the government replaced the council’s elected officials with a team of five commissioners. As a result of new police investigations, 19 men and two women were convicted in 2016 and 2017 of sexual offences in the town dating back to the late 1980s; one of the ringleaders was sentenced to 35 years in prison. About 11.9 per cent of Rotherham’s population were from black and minority ethnic backgrounds. According to one victim, the perpetrators favoured children aged 12 to 14. As they got older, the group lost interest and the child was expected to provide younger children in return for continued access to the group, on which the child came to rely for drugs, alcohol, a social life, “affection” or even a home. The vast majority of people convicted of child sexual exploitation in Rotherham since Operation Central in 2010 have been of Pakistani origin, and around 80 per cent of those charged are also of Pakistani origin, with the remainder being a mix of white British and other groups such as Roma. The most common age for those convicted is 30 to 40.
Cross-border behavior Haga Hospital and Maasstad Hospital
At least four surgeons at the HagaZiekenhuis in The Hague have been linked to sexually inappropriate behavior towards resident physicians. In a Zembla podcast, one of the affected resident physicians tells her story. A surgeon allegedly misbehaved sexually during team outings of the Department of Surgery. On both occasions, he allegedly hugged and French kissed her in the elevator of the hotel. She says that the surgeon also approached her sexually inappropriately during assessment interviews in the hospital. “When you are a resident, you are assessed after every operation by the surgeon with whom you performed the operation. He would then always say: are you coming over for a moment? That was so that he could kiss me.”
A former internist (56) from the Maasstad Hospital in Rotterdam is banned from practicing his profession by the disciplinary court. He exhibited sexually transgressive behavior in 2021 with three female interns. During a lesson on groin ultrasounds, the three were forced to undress down to their underwear. The doctor then pushed their underwear aside without warning and touched them in the pubic area. He allegedly filmed the incident with his phone. Initially, the doctor was banned from practicing, but this was converted into a one-year suspension on appeal. It was taken into account that he had never previously come into contact with disciplinary law during the more than twenty years he had worked as a doctor and that this was a very serious but ‘one-off incident’. The Health and Youth Care Inspectorate (IGJ) received multiple reports about the internist, not only from the three interns but also from two patients and a doctor in training to become a specialist (aios). The now ex-doctor performed examinations on two young female patients during several consultations without medical necessity, during which he touched their breasts and labia. He also touched her labia during one-on-one teaching of a resident physician. Both the inspection and one of the two patients filed a disciplinary complaint against the internist. The internist denies that he behaved in a sexually transgressive manner. According to him, the patients involved medically necessary acts. According to him, the teaching of the resident physician in training involved a physical examination (ultrasound of the inguinal vessels), with the consent of the resident physician. The statements of the two patients and the resident physician are credible, according to the Regional Disciplinary Board in Amsterdam. They also correspond on essential points with the sexually transgressive behavior in the case of the interns in 2023. “These actions had a profound effect on the three young women.” The board considers the internist’s sexually transgressive behavior towards two young female patients who were dependent on him, and towards a resident physician in training who had a hierarchical relationship with him, ‘outrageous and unacceptable’. “The internist has not shown, even during the hearing, that his behavior is completely unacceptable.” The internist has abused and seriously damaged the trust of the two patients and the resident physician, the board states. In general, he has also seriously damaged the trust that patients should be able to have in doctors and has thereby caused damage to the profession. All this has led the board to decide to remove his registration in the BIG register. It is the most severe measure that the Regional Disciplinary Board for Healthcare can impose.
Vulnerable boy abused as a sex slave for years
Three middle-aged men are suspected by the Public Prosecution Service of years of exploitation and abuse of an underage boy. A 60-year-old man from Huizen and two men aged 59 and 54 from Amersfoort are said to have used the vulnerable boy as a sex slave for years. According to the judiciary, the abuse started nine years ago, when the boy was 11. The child is said to have run away from home and was taken in by one of the suspects, who is said to have acted as a father figure. He gave him hard drugs such as GHB and ketamine. The boy became seriously addicted. The suspects are said to have created profiles on dating apps such as Grindr and arranged sex dates for the teenager. The abuse only stopped at the end of September 2024 when the case came to light. It is not clear how the abuse became known. The police are said to have received signals about serious abuse and sexual exploitation of the victim. Officers then started a major investigation. It is not yet clear today how many men abused the boy. The Public Prosecution Service considers the three suspects to be members of a criminal organization that aimed to exploit and traffic in humans. The man who took care of the boy at home is also suspected of indecent acts with a nephew. In addition, child pornography was found on his phone. The Public Prosecution Service is still investigating whether he made it himself. After the suspects were arrested, the victim went to a drug rehabilitation clinic. He is now staying in a clinic for the treatment of psychological problems. According to the public prosecutor, he is doing better and his statements are becoming clearer. The investigation into the case is still ongoing. There may be another victim and more men were involved in the abuse. The phone of one of the suspects still has to be investigated.
Child Abuse Gang in Scotland
Seven members of a child abuse gang in Scotland have been sentenced to prison terms ranging from a minimum of eight to 20 years, with a possible life sentence, by Scotland’s highest criminal court. “This court is used to dealing with the worst cases of behaviour but I have never seen this kind of depravity against children,” said the judge who handed down the sentences. “Extreme abuse of children like this seems to be rare.” A special commission will assess whether the convicts still pose a risk to society after they have served the minimum sentence. Even if they are released on parole, they will remain under supervision and the commission can send them back to prison at any time. The perpetrators are five men and two women aged between 42 and 51. They have been convicted of assault and sexual abuse of three young children, four of whom have also been convicted of attempted murder of the youngest victim. Some of the convicts had criminal records, but not of sexual violence. Between 2012 and 2019, they organized “rape nights” and “dance and sex nights” in a filthy apartment frequented by drug users. The three victims were under 13 years old. The two oldest, a boy and a girl, were beaten and sexually abused. They were also forced to use alcohol and drugs. The youngest child, a girl, was raped. She also stated that she was locked in an oven and kitchen cupboard full of spiders and forced to eat dog food. The three came to the attention of social services in 2017, but it was not until 2020 that suspicions arose that they had been abused and mistreated. It is unclear where the children’s parents were.
Child Abuse in the US
Sexually transgressive behavior in police project
Abuse by parents
A 12-year-old boy from Enschede was raped several times by his own mother in the summer of 2023. This was probably done on the orders of his father and was always recorded on camera. The Public Prosecution Service demanded long prison sentences against the victim’s parents in court today. They are refugees from Syria. The abuse came to light when the boy asked a neighbor to call the police for him. After he told the police about his home situation, his father and mother were arrested for domestic violence that same day. The police found eight videos and eleven photos on their phones, showing the mother having sex with her then 12-year-old son. The woman admitted that it was her. The Public Prosecution Service assumes that the father ordered the sex. He told the mother exactly what he wanted from her in chat conversations. “The eldest son was abused in the bedroom by his own mother. All this for the pleasure of the father’s perverse sexual preferences,” said the public prosecutor. The mother said she regretted what she had done to her son and burst into tears several times in court. “I know I made mistakes, I admit that. But it all happened against my will,” she stated. Earlier she had said that her husband had forced her to have sex, today she pointed to a “gang of Assyrian men”. The judge asked whether the fear of honor killing had anything to do with these contradictory statements. “Yes, I am afraid of that. I did something that is strictly forbidden in our culture. We are Muslim, and what happened is diametrically opposed to Islam.” According to the Public Prosecution Service, however, there is no evidence that other men incited her to do the acts. Nor does it appear from the chat conversations that the mother resisted. “The conversations show that they did it together.” The woman is also said to have been under the influence of alcohol and cocaine during the abuse. In addition to committing and aiding rape, the parents are suspected of distributing child pornography. In addition, the father is on trial for domestic violence. According to the Public Prosecution Service, he once forced the mother to shave her head and pressed cigarette butts out on her skin. His children were also covered in bruises. If it were up to the Public Prosecution Service, the father would go to prison for eight years and the mother for six years. “Home with your parents is normally a place where you should feel safe. Unfortunately, that was completely different for these children. They fled Syria for a better life here in the Netherlands, but in the end their lives here became hell.” The court will give its verdict in a few weeks.
Abuse of clients of Limburg youth care institution Hilzijn
Clients and staff of the Hilzijn youth care institution were confronted with violence, drug crime and forced prostitution by the admitted youth and young adults with behavioral and psychiatric problems. Clients who had to go to a closed institution by a judge ended up at Hilzijn. In the group, almost everyone had a supervision order (OTS) or a judicial measure (RM), which is an ankle bracelet, time clock or a location ban.” An average group consisted of three young people with an ankle bracelet or a ban from the area, two with anorexia or bulimia, almost everyone had an addiction and two who harmed themselves. The police had to come every day when a client wanted to hit a care worker again. Young people ran away to carry out orders from criminals. Girls said they had to go to hotels in the region to have paid sex with men. Boys had to deliver packages and were given debit cards in their name. Employees were told that “the police don’t have time right now” to get a girl out of a building where she had forced sex. Hilzijn employees then repeatedly got girls out of buildings themselves, risking their own lives.
A 16-year-old girl was raped during her stay at Hilzijn. The boy also filmed it. Because the victim did not dare to speak out herself, it was decided in consultation with the police that a supervisor would file a report on her behalf. After that report, two officers went to the institution to arrest the boy. The boy reacted angrily and rebelliously. According to an employee, the situation was handled incorrectly, because in this type of ‘red’ boys can quickly escalate a situation. The suspect then destroyed his phone, causing important evidence to be lost.
In early March 2025, two women were raped by several men in southern India and a man was killed. This happened at a river in the city of Hampi, a popular tourist destination because of its many temples. One of the female victims was an Israeli tourist, the other an Indian owner of a so-called homestay, a place for tourists to stay overnight in local homes. The two women were stargazing by the river with three male tourists – an American and two Indians – on Thursday evening when they were attacked by a group of men. There was reportedly an argument about money before the attack. According to the local police chief, the attackers pushed the three men into the river and then raped the women. The American man and one of the men from India survived. The body of the third man was found on Saturday morning. According to the police, the perpetrators had followed the group to the river. The three men reportedly rode up to the group on a motorcycle to ask where they could get gas. They then reportedly demanded 100 rupees from the group, which is about one euro. When the stargazers refused to give them, a fight broke out. When one of the male tourists gave 20 rupees, the men refused and attacked the group, the police chief said. Rape and violence are widespread in India. Last summer, there were major protests in the country after the rape and death of a trainee doctor. Earlier this year, the perpetrator, a police volunteer, was sentenced to life in prison. In 2019, people took to the streets after the rape and murder of a female veterinarian. In 2012, a 23-year-old student was raped by several men on a bus. That also led to mass protests. After the incident in 2012, the Indian government amended the law, which now allows the death penalty for the rape of girls under the age of 12. It also punishes officers who refuse to report sexual violence. According to human rights organization Human Rights Watch, that law is still not being sufficiently enforced. In 2021, a high court judge came under fire after telling a rape suspect that it would be best to marry his underage victim to avoid jail. Last fall, the Indian government rejected a Supreme Court call to criminalize marital rape, saying the measure was “excessively harsh” and that there were already enough laws protecting women from sexual violence.
Honor killing
Honor killings are something that persists in some communities, including some immigrant or conservative communities. The idea of honor killings often stems from traditions or social norms that are not necessarily part of the original religious texts, but rather have emerged from cultural practices and interpretations of that religion, often with an emphasis on “honor” and the control over women. In some cases, honor killings or the idea of “protecting family honor” can go so far as to take justice into the hands of a family member, usually a man, who feels he has the right to take revenge on a woman who is perceived as a loss of “honor.” This often occurs in situations where the woman is seen as the property of the man, and her behavior is seen as a reflection of male “honor.” It is a phenomenon that can occur in different cultures and religions, but it is not specific to any particular religion, although it is often wrongly associated with Islam. Honor killings are in many cases the result of cultural traditions rather than religious precepts. In some societies, particularly in countries where male power and female oppression are deeply entrenched, the concept of “honor” is often seen as an important social norm. These cultural norms can sometimes influence religious doctrines, but they are not necessarily prescribed by the religion itself. Islam itself, like other world religions, does not have teachings that condone honor killings. On the contrary, Islamic teachings emphasize the value of justice and compassion, and have even established women’s rights in many areas, such as marriage, inheritance, and the right to protection from violence. The idea that men can do whatever they want while women are controlled stems from patriarchal socio-cultural structures, which in some societies are stronger than the religious message itself. The idea of male superiority and female subservience has, over time, led to deep-rooted power relations that are difficult to shake, even when religious teachings do not support such inequalities. Honor killings are often related to deep-rooted ideas of ownership and possession over women in a society that has patriarchal norms. Women are often seen as “the bearers of family honor,” meaning that their behavior (such as sexual freedom, marriage choices, or even social behavior) directly affects the status of the male members of the family. When women behave according to the norms of the family or community, this is seen as a violation of collective honor, and this can lead to the tragic and violent acts of honor killings.The notion of “honor” and “revenge” can go so far in some communities that it even bypasses the legal system or government authority. This is a major problem in countries and communities where family and cultural norms are more respected than the law of the land. In cases of honor killings, justice cannot even be applied due to social pressure and family protection, leading to a cycle of violence and injustice that is difficult to break. The influence of cultural traditions can be so strong that people within these communities do not always follow the legal norms and societal values of their host country, especially when it comes to issues of family structure and personal lives.
A 34-year-old gardener drugged and raped several women, including minors, in the southern French province of Hérault in recent years. The facts came to light in January 2024 after two victims filed a complaint with the police in the municipality of Saint-Jean-de-Védas, near Montpellier. One of the women stated that she had had coffee with her parents’ gardener in their home a few days earlier. During the conversation, the man had asked for a painkiller because he “had a headache.” When the victim went to look for the medicine, her vision went black. “A little later I woke up in my bed,” she testified. The victim went to the hospital, where sedatives were found in her urine. The second victim made a similar statement. The police opened an investigation into the gardener, who had no criminal record, and soon came across a third complaint from October 2024. Like the other two women, the third victim said she had woken up in a daze in her bed after the gardener had done odd jobs in her home. The police arrested the 34-year-old gardener on March 14, 2025. He admitted to abusing ‘about fifteen women’, including minors. The perpetrator repeatedly drugged his victims with the sedative alprazolam before raping them. The man also stated that he filmed the incidents and was always under the influence of cocaine. According to the newspaper Midi Libre, the gardener is also said to have broken into an underage woman’s home while she was sleeping in November last year. “He took intimate photos of her, but drugged and did not rape her. The police are now busy searching for the other victims. The gardener risks a prison sentence of twenty years.
Barbie (Samantha de Jong)
Monday, March 10, 2025 was the first of ten days of hearings in a mega case about the alleged sexual exploitation of six people. Six victims, five suspects, one suspect who is also a victim. With the most famous victim being Samantha de Jong, better known as former reality star Barbie in the popular TV program Oh Oh Cherso. ‘I earned 5,000 euros a day. Nancy and Anthony said that I
would never see my children again if I filed a complaint,’ she claims. Three of the five suspects are said to have exploited Samantha de Jong. According to the Public Prosecution Service (OM), they were guilty of a series of crimes concerning her between May 1, 2021 and August 31, 2022. Taking nude photos of her and posting them on sex sites. Maintaining contact with clients. Beating her, taking her to a home, administering drugs, not letting her sleep. Taking away her driver’s license, phone and dog. Isolating her, confiscating money and threatening to kill her if she filed a complaint. The first day was mainly about Samantha and what had happened to her. But she herself was not there, because she is not doing well at all, or actually just bad. ‘She regularly struggles with depressive symptoms and she still has flashbacks and nightmares. She has been receiving psychological guidance for a few months now. She cannot handle a hearing like today, and it would not be wise to expose her to this’, her lawyer Sébas Diekstra explains.
Moreover, she has been ‘no longer legally competent’ since February, he adds. ‘Which means that she cannot independently perform legal acts, such as entering into agreements or managing her finances. The case involving Barbie came to light when she went to the local police officer and said that she was being forced into prostitution. That is said to have happened in Hoofddorp, for example. Suspect Anthony J. rented a house there. According to him, the house was intended to build a cannabis plantation, but Samantha stated that she had been forced into prostitution there. ‘I had to play the whore in Hoofddorp. Fucking Barbie, was on a kinky website. Men were queuing. I was flattened with drugs’, the judge reads from Samantha’s file. ‘I swear to you that none of it is true’, responds suspect and ex-partner Dave Taal. in the courtroom.
‘I never swear on my children, but now I do.’ The judge then says somewhat cynically: ‘I have seen people swear on mother’s children here and in the end it all turned out to be different.’
In the courtroom, the image emerges of a group of drug addicts who wanted to earn a lot of money through prostitution. Samantha was part of that group and could earn a lot of money through sex work because of her fame. She was the ‘goldmine’. On a good day she earned 2000 to 3000 euros, the file states.
Like suspect Dave Taal, Anthony J. and Nancy J. both portray Barbie as a fantasist. Nancy J. is both a victim (of sexual exploitation by co-suspects) and a suspect in the case and at times very emotional. According to her, Barbie herself wanted nude photos to be taken of her and she voluntarily did sex work.
‘She lies about everything. Samantha is not at all innocent and vulnerable. Of course we took her out because she wanted to earn money, but that’s what we all wanted.’
Nancy J. points mainly to Anthony J. as the one who arranged everything. In a short period of time, 203 messages were sent from his phone in which Samantha was offered for sex. ‘Anthony started working with Kinky (sex site, ed.) when the money for drugs ran out. He drugged girls with drugs and then made them play whores.’
At the end of the hearing of her case, the judge lists statements from all kinds of people. ‘You had to drop off the customers’ money downstairs with Tony. Tony collected the money. We didn’t get any more money, just food and drugs. My profile also had to have pictures of Samantha, because then more customers would come. Samantha wanted to leave Dave because she was beaten by him.’
The other cases will be dealt with in the coming days. Most of the physical violence is said to have come from Hassan B. Although he himself denies it, two victims tell how much they suffered from the beatings and rapes by B.. Danielle told the police that she was tied to a heating pipe for hours and was raped by him. How humiliating it was that he ‘sold’ her to drug dealers. She was the only one of the women who managed to stay off drugs for years, but after three years she could no longer cope with life with B.. Getting away seemed impossible. He always managed to find her. If necessary, he would take her straight off the street and into his car. ‘You know, if this is my life, I’m not getting away from here’, she told the police about how she eventually became addicted. A sentence of fourteen years was demanded against main suspect Anthony J. (50). The sentence demanded against Hassan B. is twelve years and compulsory admission to a TBS clinic. Dave T. will disappear behind bars for three years, if it is up to the Public Prosecution Service. Sander S. will hear his sentence later this year. He will first be admitted to the Pieter Baan Center for examination. The sentence demanded against Nancy J. is three years. After that, she would have to be treated in a TBS clinic for her addiction and (childhood) traumas, under certain conditions. ‘I never caused her any misery. She caused misery to me and my children’, suspect Dave Taal responded to the statement. ‘It affects me’, said Nancy J. ‘I believe that she is being abused, but a lot of things are not true. I think she needs a lot of help and I hope she gets it and I hope she stays away from me .’ Main suspect Anthony J. responded by saying that he ‘never wanted to do anything to her’. Barbie is claiming a total of almost 75,000 euros in material damages and 10,000 euros in immaterial damages from the three suspects. In this major case, five suspects are on trial for the (sexual) exploitation of a total of six victims. Samantha de Jong is one of the victims. A total of ten days of hearings are planned. The suspects are the well-known Hague martial artist Anthony J., Hassan B., Dave T., Sander S. and Nancy J. Nancy J. once participated in the TV program Dames in de dop. In addition to being a suspect, she is also a victim in this case. The verdict followed on April 25
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The Public Prosecution Service had originally demanded a 3-year prison sentence for Dave Taal, but the court imposed a lower sentence of 10 months . This is because the court did not consider it proven in all cases that there was coercion or violence, and the exploitation period did not cover the entire time.
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Dave Taal, who was in a relationship with Samantha between May 2021 and August 2022, was accused of involvement in her exploitation. According to the Public Prosecution Service, he was complicit in forcing Samantha into prostitution, assault, and taking her personal belongings (such as her driver’s license, telephone and dog). Samantha stated that Dave “had been trafficking in girls for a while” and took her to Anthony J., one of the main suspects. He was sentenced to 10 months in prison.
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Anthony J. was sentenced to 8 years in prison . He was seen as one of the central figures in the network and called Samantha de Jong “a goldmine” in messages.
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Hassan B. was sentenced to 10 years in prison (partly because of rape and abuse of other victims). Danielle stated that she had been abused by B. for years and that she feared his possible release.
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Nancy J., also a reality star, was sentenced to 29 months in prison (10 months of which were suspended) and is seen as both a perpetrator and a victim.
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Sander S. has yet to be tried after an investigation at the Pieter Baan Center.
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Samantha’s situation : Samantha was a victim of forced prostitution, abuse, drugging, and threats between 2021 and 2022. According to her statement, she sometimes yielded up to 5,000 euros a day, but had to hand over all the money. Her vulnerable position (drug addiction, mental problems) was exploited by the suspects. She was not present at the trial due to her mental state, but her lawyer Sébas Diekstra read an emotional victim statement in which she spoke about her lasting fear and trauma.
The convicts will appeal except Nancy. The Public Prosecution Service has also announced that it will not appeal the judge’s ruling.
6 years in prison for online abuse of 33 girls
The Public Prosecution Service had demanded a six-year prison sentence on April 15, 2025 against Daan F. from Zwolle for abusing 33 underage girls online. The 34-year-old man approached girls aged 8 to 14 via TikTok and Snapchat, it emerged today during the criminal case in Zwolle. During the hearing, he confessed to abusing dozens of girls online. The case came to light in 2022 when a father discovered that his underage daughter had sent nude photos. He then filed a report. The police initially expected at least a hundred victims. In the meantime, 33 minors have been identified. F. said in court today that he mainly approached young girls “because they carry out orders faster”. The man from Zwolle approached the children between June 2021 and May 2022. “I never thought about the consequences for them or for their environment.” The police investigation showed that some girls sent him nude photos out of fear, because they feared that he would otherwise become angry. F. himself claims to have never threatened the girls. At the hearing, one of the judges asked whether it was possible that he had made a hundred victims. “That could be possible,” the suspect responded. Regarding a possible punishment, the suspect said that he would accept the consequences of his actions. The court ruled on 29 April and sentenced the perpetrator to a prison sentence of six years in accordance with the demand.