Man, 27, suspected of beating woman and setting Veenendaal fire
The Public Prosecution Service says B.K. from Rotterdam drugged and assaulted a woman, left her unconscious in woods near Veenendaal five months ago and set fire to the apartment where she was staying.
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Illustrative photo: Ramon Vasconcellos / CC BY-SA 2.0A 27-year-old man from Rotterdam, identified as B.K., is suspected of severely assaulting a woman, dousing her in petrol and leaving her unconscious in the woods between Leersum and Veenendaal, the Public Prosecution Service (OM) said at a preparatory hearing in the Utrecht district court. He is also suspected of starting a fire the same day in the Veenendaal apartment where she was staying.
The prosecutor said the woman, who comes from Spain, was drugged with cocaine and a sedative. In that state she was allegedly kicked and hit "with force to her head and body", which knocked her unconscious. K. allegedly also doused her in petrol, threatened her and took her to the woods.
A passer-by found her on 19 June at about 07:45. She was taken to UMC Utrecht with signs of hypothermia. Earlier that morning a fierce fire had broken out in an apartment on the Duivenwal in Veenendaal. According to the OM, it started in the meter cupboard and K. lit it with petrol.
K. did not leave his cell for the hearing. His lawyer, Van Stratum, spoke for him and said K. only wants to talk once the investigation is finished. Police and prosecutors still need several months for that. The relationship between suspect and victim, and the background of the violence, were not discussed.
Experts at the Netherlands Forensic Institute (NFI) are examining whether the violence could have been fatal. A psychologist and psychiatrist are examining K.'s mental state, and the petrol in the woman's hair is being compared with samples from other places.
K. was arrested in early August at a house in Rotterdam where his cousin also lived. The prosecutor said a large quantity of hard drugs was found there, and K. is being prosecuted for that too. There seems to be no link with the assault.
The OM said the woman's first statement to police gave "a confused impression", leaving "many loose ends". She will be heard again by police and then by the investigating judge. Her lawyer, Veenstra, said that, given her worrying mental health, this must happen in a safe way. She is now in Spain, where a psychologist and psychiatrist are treating her.
The court cannot yet hear the case on its merits. A new preparatory hearing is set for 20 January, and K. remains in custody.
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