During the crossbow drama, on September 17, in an apartment building on the M. Th. Steynstraat in Almelo, two women have been killed by multiple stabbings. One of them was the suspect’s downstairs neighbor, the other was her cousin. A 29-year-old Almeloër, who later stood bare-chested with a crossbow on his balcony, is the perpetrator in the eyes of the Public Prosecution Service.
Soon after the drama it became clear that the crossbowman would suffer from psychological problems. At the time, the next of kin, some of whom are assisted by Diekstra, partly blamed the system. Because the impression was that the suspect would have asked for help, but that this was not offered by mental health institutions.
LSD
Today it became clear in court that the suspect has used the drug LSD several times. Under the influence of that drug, he stabbed himself deep in the stomach earlier this year.
After the crossbow drama, the man’s apartment was searched. In addition to a knife with traces of blood from one of the victims, so-called LSD seals were also found here. These are papers with the anesthetic that can be placed under the tongue in order to get into a trip. The suspect admitted in interrogations that he was a drug user and that he was a ‘different person’.
“My clients were confronted in court today with the drugs found with the suspect and the fact that he was most likely under the influence during the offenses,” said Diekstra. “That combined with the fact that the suspect apparently knew how violent he could become when using drugs , makes things crystal clear for clients. If someone uses drugs when they know they can become seriously aggressive, you can quickly blame them.”
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‘Totally inappropriate’
Janbart Kalk, lawyer for the crossbow shooter, said in the court in Almelo that he had great respect for the fact that the next of kin do not place the blame so much on the suspect, but on the system. However, that did not go down well with the victims.
“My clients thought it was totally inappropriate that they were brought in. Because when you hear that the suspect is an LSD user and apparently know that he behaves differently because of that, you get a completely different picture of someone. was the suspect, it has completely disappeared after today.”
According to the judiciary, data carriers of the crossbowman have previously been searched for the term ‘mass murder’. And it turned out that prior to the murders, the suspect sent messages that “he was going to kill people.” He wrote that he ‘was going to do that in a trip’. In addition, traces of blood from the dead victims were found on socks of the Almeloër and the refugee nurse is an important eyewitness.
no memories
The suspect, who attended the hearing via video link, says he does not remember anything of the day in question. His counsel therefore indicated that he does not deny the allegations, but neither does he confess. Simply because the crossbowman, who had been in a coma for more than three weeks, would have to contend with a black hole in his memory.
The case will resume on March 4.
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