Overview
- Investigators told the Utrecht court they believe upstairs resident Martin G. orchestrated the February blaze at De Bauers in Soest to defraud his insurer, with a 26/27‑year‑old from Apeldoorn admitting he lit the fire for payment.
- CCTV from the apartment shows a man pouring fuel in children’s rooms before igniting the fire, which destroyed the building and forced the nighttime evacuation of 54 neighbors; damages are estimated at about €2 million.
- The partners of both male suspects have been named as suspects and a fifth contact emerged via tapped calls; prosecutors kept Martin G. in custody and expect to conclude the case file around Christmas.
- Prosecutors noted possible links between the Apeldoorn suspect and his partner and other fires not attributed to Martin G.; G.’s 2003 conviction over a Rotterdam gas explosion was cited as background, not as evidence in this case.
- In Rotterdam, the OM demanded 11 years in prison plus TBS for foster parents Johnny van den B. and Daisy W., citing severe injuries to the girl (including multiple rib and vertebra fractures and brain injury), curators’ testimony that rehabilitation has stopped with 24/7 care required, and expert reports diagnosing personality and aggression disorders; verdict timing is not yet set.