The Public Prosecution Service is demanding 18 months in prison and conditional youth TBS against the parents of the newborn child who was found 2.5 years ago in a garbage container in Amsterdam. The trial was held behind closed doors yesterday and today because the parents were minors at the time. The Public Prosecution Service speaks to AT5 of gruesome, unimaginable facts.
A newborn girl was found in a garbage container at the Meernhof in Amsterdam-Zuidoost in February 2021. A local resident heard a noise coming from the container while throwing away her garbage. She said she knew immediately that it was a baby and called the emergency services. The fire brigade managed to get the child alive from the underground container.
A few days after the find, the police managed to arrest a boy and a girl of 17 for abandoning the baby. They turned out to be the child’s parents. According to lawyer Gerald Roethof, who represents the father, the pair were convinced that the girl had died. Roethof previously said that the two young people panicked and did not know what to do. “They walked on the street with the child, at one point they passed that garbage container and then the child was ‘placed’ there.”
Remains of another baby in garden
During the investigation into the baby in the dumpster, police came across conversations about a second baby. The remains of that child were eventually found in the backyard of the mother’s home. According to the Public Prosecution Service, the two are also responsible for the death of that child.
Regarding the sentence, the Public Prosecution Service says that it may not sound very high, but that a maximum of two years in prison applies in cases involving underage suspects. Furthermore, the Public Prosecution Service blames the parents for not cooperating enough with the investigation.
The girl who was taken alive from the container is doing well considering the circumstances. She is under the authority of youth protection, the Public Prosecution Service said.
- Parents of baby in Amsterdam container suspected of murder of previous child
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