Kerwin Duinmeijer: A racist murder in Amsterdam In 2008 Ronald P, who was 19 years old and living in Putten at the time, was apprehended for the murder and jailed in 2010 for 18 years. On their release the men were given almost a €1m each in compensation. de Vries and policeman Jan Blaauw remained unconvinced and pushed for a DNA test of the hairs which turned out to be a match with the semen. The boyfriend never materialised but the judge in the case found the story compelling enough to sentence the men to 10 years in jail. Neither the hair nor the semen belonged to either man but police were so convinced they had the killers they came up with a theory: Christel must have had sex earlier with a boyfriend and the subsequent rape ‘dragged’ out the semen. Witnesses claimed to have seen an old green Mercedes driving around in woods near the house at the time of the murder and owners Wilco Viets and Herman Du Bois – who were known to take a green Mercedes for a spin at weekends – were quickly arrested. Traces of semen and two hairs were found on her leg. On her return the grandmother found Christel dead. Her grandmother turned out to be visiting a sick friend and Christel waited for her in the house. In January 1994 stewardess Christel Ambrosius cycled over to her grandmother’s house on the edge of the small town of Putten on the Veluwe. In 1994 two men were sentenced to ten years – of which they had already served seven when they were released – for the murder of Christel Ambrosius. The Putten murder case is one of the most notorious miscarriages of justice ever recorded in the Netherlands. Miscarriage of justice: the Putten murder case In it Klinkhamer describes various ways in which the killing of his wife may have occurred. In 2007 his book ‘Woensdag, gehaktdag’ was published. He confessed immediately, claiming his wife went for him first with the crowbar. Klinkhamer was a suspect in her disappearance but it wasn’t until 2000, when the new owner of the house in Hongerige Wolf discovered Gofiron’s remains, that Klinkhamer was caught. He then buried her underneath a shed under a layer of concrete. The marriage deteriorated and in 1991 Klinkhamer hit his wife over the head with a crowbar during an argument and killed her. Klinkhamer played the stockmarket but lost everything in the crash of 1987, including his wife’s money. He had several failed marriages, then married Hannie Gofiron and moved to the hamlet of Hongerige Wolf (Hungry Wolf) in Groningen. He had a checkered career, joining the Foreign Legion at 19, working as a butcher and then becoming a novelist. Woensdag, gehaktdag (Wednesday, minced meat day) is a Dutch saying that takes on very sinister meaning in the case of Richard Klinkhamer. Several years, and a raid by the fraud squad later, the family firm was sold for just €1. On being released they took over their father’s life insurance business at the villa and in 2007 made the Quote 500 rich list, with a fortune put at €147m. Boudewijn and Hennie were jailed for nine years, Ewout for six and the brothers were allowed to continue their studies in prison. Photo: Fotocollectie Anefo via Wikimedia Commonsĭuring the court case the brothers were allowed several outings – among which a sailing holiday – amid cries of class justice. It is thought that between 18 ‘Goeie Mie’ (Good Mie) – she earned the name for her readiness to help people out – poisoned over 100 people, mostly neighbours and members of her family.īoudewijn Henny on his way to court. ![]() It’s not exactly a proud boast but a Dutch woman by the name of Maria Catharina Swanenburg is mentioned in the Guinness Book of Records as the most prolific poison murderer of all time. Prolific poisoner Maria Catharina Swanenburg When Rembrandt heard of the events he went to the field and drew her twice: a young girl, a child almost, who came to a miserable end in the big city. She was strangled to death and her body hung from a pole in a field, the axe next to her head, as a warning to others. She jumped into the Damrak – which was a canal in those days – and was promptly fished out to stand trial. When the woman started hitting her with a broom the girl snapped, grabbed the first thing to hand – which unfortunately for the landlady happened to be an axe – and killed her tormentor. When two weeks had gone by Elsje still hadn’t found a job and her landlady wanted some money, or failing that, Elsje’s belongings. Here’s a selection of headline makers.Įlsje Christians kills her landlady and is hung for the murderĮlsje Christians came to Amsterdam from Denmark in 1664 to look for a job as a maid and rented a room in a hostel. That is not say we have not had our share of nasty murders in the past. The Dutch murder rate is pretty low in global terms – just two a week in the entire country in 2018. Havemeyer Collection, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
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