Kinderdijk murder suspect pleads innocence, but judge sees too many serious objections

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KINDERDIJK / ALBLASSERDAM • The 77-year-old Cor de J. from Alblasserdam thinks he is innocent of the murder of a 74-year-old man from Overijsse (Belgium). He wants to tell his story to an examining magistrate soon.

This became apparent on Friday 17 March during a pre-trial hearing in the court of Rotterdam. De Damdorper says, despite the large list of cases that argue against him, that he is innocent.

The Public Prosecution Service (OM) does not agree and holds him responsible for the murder that took place in the night of December 1 to 2 in the villa on Puntweg in Kinderdijk.

The OM assumes that De J. shot the victim. The 74-year-old Belgian had been in a relationship with the resident for several months.

Arrest
The day after the shooting, the police arrested a 77-year-old Alblasserdammer on suspicion of involvement in the shooting incident. This man often visited the villa in Kinderdijk and was there, among other things, as the resident’s handyman.

The public prosecutor told on Friday, March 17, exactly what De J. is suspected of. “The gentleman is suspected of having robbed the victim, premeditated or not, of life by shooting him in the head with a firearm.”

Staged robbery
“The second fact is the threat to the resident of the house on Puntweg, by shooting at the victim in her presence and then aiming the firearm at her and saying: “Then you know how much I love you.” And “But I will have to shoot you now too, because this is a robbery. It should look like that. Wait five minutes and then call the police. If you don’t do this, I will find you anywhere in the world.”

Fact three is the extortion of Ms. This is a large amount of jewellery. The occupant of the Kinderdijk villa had to put the jewels in a bag, probably to make the case look like a robbery.

The public prosecutor further stated that the investigation is still ongoing and that a witness has yet to be heard. “That relates to the ferry and seeing a boat on the water.”

Justice also wants the suspect to be examined in the Pieter Baan Center. This will not happen for the time being, because the suspect has indicated that he will not talk there.

Different explanations
The resident has made several statements. At first she went along with the statement that was handed to her by the suspect, because she would have been afraid of the suspect. “In a later statement, the lady said that she said: Cor, what are you doing here?”, said the Public Prosecutor.

According to the Public Prosecution Service, the weapon, a 9 millimeter pistol, and the absence of forced entry damage lead to the suspect Cor de J. The suspect’s bus can also be seen on camera images from the area, which were made around the fatal robbery.

According to the lawyer, telephone conversations between the suspect and the occupant of the villa, which took place after the fatal robbery but before he was arrested, indicate that he is innocent.

Suspicious things on the Lek
The lawyer also reported that suspicious things were seen on the river Lek in the evening and night of the shooting. The lawyer was only told about this when he had actively asked the judiciary about it.

On the evening of the incident, a witness would have seen that a large boat was maneuvering for a long time and that a black polo was taken from that boat and a white car came from the hold. Later, the black car would go back and forth and stop on the loop; a small road just in front of the house. The witness leaves at a quarter to twelve in the evening. At that point, that car was still on the loop.

“Who was in that car? The Puntweg only gives access to three homes. Furthermore, it is a dead end. In short: when you come there, you go to those houses,” said the suspect’s lawyer.

More research
The Ministry of Justice indicated during the hearing that this part will be further investigated.

In his last word, the suspect indicated that the statements of the occupant of the villa are incorrect. “I can tell you what has happened and what has not been twisted. I know what happened.”

He wants to tell his story to an examining magistrate, but not to a detective, because he does not trust them.

The judges ultimately ruled that there are still too many serious objections against the suspect. A new pre-trial hearing is scheduled for June 8. Until then, Cor de J. will remain incarcerated.