The Public Prosecution Service says it cannot prove that Anne Romke van der H. intended to kill Princess Amalia or Princess Alexia. However, the prosecutor said on Monday that the trial will continue because Van der H. is suspected of preparing an attack on the princesses. In addition, the prosecution believes he planned to deprive Princess Amalia of her freedom.
According to the prosecution, Van der H. owned two axes with the words Alexia, Mossad and Sieg Heil carved into them. He also had a handwritten text containing the words Amalia, Alexia and bloodbath. Furthermore, the man is suspected of threatening and spitting at police officers in Harlingen and Leeuwarden.
At the start of the hearing, Van der H. told the court he was psychotic. He said he believed he had received orders from above to go survival camping in Poland with Princess Amalia. He had already bought equipment for the trip. Shortly afterwards, police arrested him in January when he shouted threats from the balcony of a hotel in The Hague.
During the hearing, Van der H. said he could not remember carving the names of the princesses into the axes. Instead, he claimed he carved cartoon characters and possibly a heart. He also said he heard voices telling him to be ready for a mission in Poland. As a result, he waited for a signal from the Ministry of Defence and did not prepare for the trip himself.
Van der H. says he struggles to explain what he felt during the psychosis, which he says lasted two years. He told the court he believed he was in a relationship with Princess Amalia and thought he would marry her. “That was all dictated by my thoughts and voices in my head,” he said.
A psychologist and a psychiatrist examined him and concluded that the psychosis fully affected him. Moreover, the behavioural experts say his problems are serious and require long‑term treatment. They recommend conditional TBS (Treatment Order with Conditions). Even so, the suspect disagrees and hopes the court will issue a care authorisation instead, allowing treatment in a mental health institution. “I have a diagnosis now, and I didn’t have one before. I have schizophrenia; now I know that,” he said.
The Public Prosecution Service will present its sentencing demand later this afternoon.
@ANP | News Brainport
