On March 18 this year, a man was walking his dog around 1:00 PM in the Apeldoorn neighborhood De Maten. As he passed a nearby house, he was suddenly attacked by the resident who rushed outside carrying a samurai sword.
The victim tried to escape but fell to the ground. The suspect struck the victim multiple times with the sword. Other neighbors—later witnesses—heard shouting and screaming. When the victim’s wife arrived and tried to intervene, she was also attacked and struck in the arm with the weapon, causing an arterial bleeding.
Both victims, lying heavily bleeding on the street, sustained very severe, life-threatening injuries and had to undergo emergency surgery. Doctors considered amputating both arms of the man due to the severity of the injuries but ultimately prevented it.
The Public Prosecution Service suspects the attacker, a 44-year-old Apeldoorn resident who was arrested shortly after the incident, of attempted manslaughter on the man and serious assault on the woman. “By randomly striking another person with a samurai sword, where the suspect hit multiple parts of the body and head, it was highly likely that a vital organ would be hit,” stated the public prosecutor during the sentencing motivation. A cut on the victim’s face leaves a permanent scar: “For the rest of his life, when he looks in the mirror, he will be confronted with this.”
The sentence demanded by the Public Prosecution Service today in the court in Zutphen: a prison sentence of 7 years and compulsory TBS (forensic psychiatric treatment).
Investigation shows that a neighbor dispute caused the suspect to lose control. There had been previous discussions between neighbors and the suspect about walking dogs in front of the suspect’s house. The suspect, in whose home the bloodied sword was found, does not deny his actions and claims to have had a blackout at the moment he severely injured his neighbors with the samurai sword.
Psychiatric evaluation reveals that the suspect suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and complex personality disorder. Besides the prison sentence, the Public Prosecution Service therefore requests compulsory TBS with enforced care. The Public Prosecution Service: “It is in the interest of the suspect and thus also the victims and society that he receives the intensive treatment he needs.”
At the hearing, the Public Prosecution Service expressed concerns about the psychological and psychiatric findings. “They show a certain calculating attitude; the suspect carefully weighs his words and places himself in the victim role. The remorse expressed by the suspect appears instrumental. Notably, there may be a ‘feigned adjustment.’” For these reasons, according to the Public Prosecution Service, compulsory TBS after the prison sentence is a necessary and appropriate measure.
