PARAMARIBO, Suriname, CMC – A judge has increased by 10 years the jail term of a 42-year-old Dutchman, who was found guilty of raping and murdering a Brazilian woman on June 5, 2022.
The man, whose initials have been given as NJ, had appealed the 20-year jail sentence, saying that he had been under the influence of alcohol and drugs and had little recollection of the incident.
The Public Prosecution Service (OM) had appealed the previous conviction, and Justice Judge Alida Johanns imposed the new sentence in accordance with the OM’s request.
“We consider this an appropriate sentence,” the judge stated.
The court heard that neighbours heard commotion in the room where the woman was staying, and when they investigated, they found her half-naked, with head injuries, lying in a pool of blood, and her mouth stuffed shut.
A few hours later, the suspect, NJ, was found half-naked in a broken-down vehicle on the complex. He presumably entered the woman’s room through the attic.
Justice Johanns said that the prosecution, as it had done during the original trial, had proven its case and that the accused had not provided any insight into the circumstances of the incident.
“It is certain, however, that the rape and murder were brutal. The suspect acted very deliberately, breaking through the ceiling of the victim’s room. With this act, he caused immeasurable suffering to the woman’s family,” the judge said.
She also noted that the convicted man had never shown any signs of remorse or guilt.
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