Ruud and Corry van Veen from Zoetermeer cannot understand it: the man who killed their daughter and granddaughters in 2005 is allowed to go on unaccompanied leave to visit his father.
The ‘Zoetermeer family drama’ is regarded as one of the most lurid of this century. Richard H. from Zoetermeer murdered his own wife and his own little daughter, because his Polish mistress – who, by the way, knew nothing about it – would drop by. His family was ‘in the way’, so to speak. Richard H. (now in his early fifties) beat his wife Claudia to death in April 2005 and then strangled his daughters Marieke and Charlotte, aged 5 and 3.
After five days, he reported them missing and spent weeks trying to mislead his in-laws and the police. He joined the search, hung drawings of his children over the blood spatter on the wall and told detectives to watch out for the girls’ hugs. But eventually his story started to rattle and he fell through. The children were found in the woods near Chaam. Buried, in their nightgowns and with the cuddly toys in their hands.
The question of how this could happen has never really been answered. A long line of experts ruled it a personality disorder, which in H. means that he bottled up frustrations, was conflict avoidant, was not assertive and did not stand up for himself… until he completely exploded.
He be so healed
After an appeal, H. eventually received 20 years and TBS, which in the old prison regime means that he was allowed to start TBS after 13 years. Last August, H. thought he had a good chance of getting his TBS treatment to end through the courts. He would be healed. Nevertheless, his TBS treatment was extended by two years, as his lawyer had expected. “Just because of the social unrest.”
Ruud and Corry, the (grand)parents of Claudia, Marieke and Charlotte, keep an eye on Richard H.’s movements to this day. He now enjoys more and more freedoms. Earlier this year, Ruud and Corry received a letter stating that from now on he can go on unaccompanied leave: ‘The conditions have been changed, the TBS detainee is allowed to visit his father and spend the night there. This is now allowed unaccompanied.’
Richard H. as an ideal patient is too good to be true, and of course it is
More than two weeks ago – April 6, exactly eighteen years after the gruesome family murder – Ruud warned the practitioners by letter: ‘How is it possible that this murderer is facilitated on all sides to achieve his goal, freedom?’ They pointed to the judge’s comment last year that H. tries very hard to seem like the perfect patient. “Too good to be true, and it is. Think carefully before making irreversible decisions. There was no response.
Richard’s lawyer would not comment on the leave arrangements, but says his client has actually been cured, and therefore harmless, although he understands that society is “disgusted with his client.” There is a good chance that Richard will get his freedom back in full next year through the court (which will review every two years whether the TBS should be continued).
Nevertheless, Ruud and Corry (now 75 and 73 years old) still have one hope: “Recently, you can also make a victim impact statement at such a hearing about extending TBS,” says Ruud. “If our health allows it, we will use it next year. Perhaps that can make the difference.”
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