A former cop from Brunssum has been convicted of years of hemp cultivation and money laundering. Yet he no longer has to go to jail. The reason: the trial has been delayed for 3.5 years. He does have to pay Enexis 68 million for tapped electricity. His wife was also convicted.
The 48-year-old Brunssumer D. and his 45-year-old wife V. earned many tons between 2005 and 2013 with the illegal cultivation of hemp plants in a home in the Treebeek neighborhood.
The house was D.'s property and was occupied by his parents-in-law. In exchange for maintaining the illegal plantation in the basement, the in-laws did not have to pay rent and received an average of eight thousand euros per harvest. The father-in-law stated this at the time of his arrest in early 2014. Shortly afterwards, he died in detention.
According to lawyers Jo Marchal of D. and Serge Weening of wife V., the way the police handled the father-in-law's death is inhumane and degrading. Investigators provided false information about the death in order to influence D.'s interrogation, the lawyers argue. The court sees no evidence of this.
It was also impossible for the lawyers to interview the father-in-law himself, which they consider necessary because the prosecution's evidence rests on his testimony as a witness. The prosecution should therefore be declared inadmissible, Weening and Marchal believe. However, the deceased father-in-law's testimony is supported by other evidence, the court objects.
Proceeds
The hemp crop came to light during a raid in June 2013, when police found two hundred cannabis plants and over seven kilograms of hemp. The father-in-law stated that since 2005, three harvests were carried out each year. Based on the size of the plantation and the period over which it was grown, police estimated the yield to be many tons, but the court was unable to determine the exact amount.
It did reveal that the husband and wife purchased cars, motorcycles, vacations and luxury goods that did not fit their normal income as prison guards and pedicurists. They also had a foreign bank account. The court assumes that the couple laundered four tons.
Illegal hemp cultivation of this magnitude normally fits a prison sentence. However, the handling of the case has been delayed for years because the prosecution did nothing for almost three years. This leads to a substantial reduction of the sentence. D. receives 12 months in prison, 10 of which are suspended. The time he should serve is equal to the remand. In addition, he must repay 68 mille to Enexis for illegally tapping electricity. Wife V. was sentenced to three months' probation for her part in the money laundering.
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