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B. denies. The Supreme Court must now consider whether the procedure has been conducted correctly.
The court ruled on Friday that the manslaughter and fornication on and with Nicky Verstappen has been proven. The death of 11-year-old Nicky Verstappen in 1998 was caused with a “considerable degree of probability” by the deprivation of liberty, and the fornication by Jos B. On appeal, twenty years in prison was demanded. B. has always denied.
The family reacted emotionally to the court’s ruling. Nicky’s father called after Jos B. as he went to his cell block and shouted, “Dirty dog!” Down in the room, the attorneys general and Nicky’s relatives hugged. Royce de Vries wrapped his arms around Berthie Verstappen and Nicky’s sister, Femke.
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Jos B. was charged with aggravated manslaughter. That is a heavier form of manslaughter to make the sexual abuse easier. Jos B. was acquitted of this. According to the court, there was insufficient evidence for this. He has also been charged with groping and sexually abusing Nicky, deprivation of liberty and possession of child pornography.
Unnatural death
The court assumes a non-natural death as a result of a crime. The court also assumes that Jos B. was involved in all three facts: the deprivation of liberty, the fornication and the death of Nicky. It cannot be other than that Nicky died as a result of choking violence on his head and throat. He also belonged to an age group in which Jos B. was sexually interested. It cannot be otherwise than that Jos B. forced Nicky to come along.
According to experts, the cause of Nicky’s death could not be determined with 100% certainty. Numerous options have been reviewed. The Public Prosecution Service assumes suffocation and/or smothering. The court rules out hypothermia, a congenital abnormality and a fight with his camp mates. A very rare stress-related death and suffocation cannot be ruled out.
According to the court, the boy was forced with physical force to undergo lewd acts. As a result, and possibly also as a result of stress, Nicky has died, the court says. Conditional intent to kill has been proven.
Nicky must have known “particularly anxious moments”, the court says. Jos B. has deprived an 11-year-old boy of the most precious thing: the right to life.
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Targeted acts with a sexual motive
Nicky Verstappen disappeared in the night of 9 to 10 August 1998 from the youth camp at Brunssummerheide. His body was found a day later in a nearby Christmas tree plot. For a long time the case seemed to remain unsolved. B. only came into the picture in 2018, after a large-scale DNA test. When the name of the Limburger became known, however, he turned out to be without a trace. B., an avid bushcrafter, was arrested in Spain after a manhunt.
B.’s DNA was found on Nicky’s pajama pants and underpants. The underpants were backwards and inside out. The court assumes that Nicky was undressed with a sexual motive, and that his clothes were then put back on incorrectly. Biological traces of Jos B. were found in several places on the inside and outside, but no sperm.
In addition to saliva traces, a hair belonging to Jos B. was found. The nature of the traces indicates targeted acts with a sexual motive, the court says. “It is inevitable that Jos B. has touched Nicky’s genitals with his hands.” Sexual abuse is therefore not, but fornication by Jos B. has been proven, the court says. The court also assumes that Jos B. deprived him of his freedom.
Never dare to report a find
The 59-year-old Limburger denies having anything to do with Nicky’s death. He admitted that he had found the boy at the time, but according to B. he had already died by then. Out of fear – B. has a past history – he said he would never have dared to report the find. The court in Maastricht did not believe that story and sentenced him in November 2020 to a prison sentence of 12.5 years. Both B. and the Public Prosecution Service appealed.
The appeal took a striking turn when B.’s former fellow inmate Bekir E. was heard in court last year. The murderer of the 16-year-old student Hümeyra had stated that B. had made a confessional statement to him. “He said it was not the intention to kill Nicky Verstappen. He had held his hand over his mouth for too long.” B. dismissed E.’s statement as nonsense. The court also set the statement aside on Friday.
Peter R. de Vries
The murder of Peter R. de Vries last July hung over the case like a gray veil in recent months. The crime reporter who had always kept drawing attention to the case and was a pillar of support for the Verstappen family. Nicky’s parents regularly wore a T-shirt of Peter R. de Vries to court and son Royce de Vries accompanied them after the death of his father.
After the court’s ruling, only the Supreme Court can appeal in cassation, but that court only checks whether mistakes may have been made somewhere in the procedure and the case needs to be heard again. Jos B. indicated that he would do this on Friday after the verdict.
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