Killing of Nicole van den Hurk
Nicole van den Hurk
Datec. 6 October 1995 (body discovered 22 November 1995)
LocationEindhoven, North Brabant, Netherlands
Coordinates51°25′37.7″N 5°40′1.63″E / 51.427139°N 5.6671194°E / 51.427139; 5.6671194
TypeHomicide
SuspectsAndy van den Hurk (1996, 2011)[1]
Ad van den Hurk (1996)[1]
Jos de G. (2014[1]–2016[2])
ConvictedJos de G.
ChargesTrial: Rape, manslaughter[3]
Appeal: Manslaughter
TrialTrial:
2 November 2015 – 21 November 2016 (2015-11-02 – 2016-11-21)
Appeal:
28 August – 9 October 2018 (2018-08-28 – 2018-10-09)
VerdictTrial:
Guilty (rape)
Not guilty (manslaughter)[4]
Appeal:
Guilty (rape and manslaughter)[5]
SentenceTrial: 5 years' imprisonment[4]
Appeal: 12 years' imprisonment

15-year-old Nicole van den Hurk (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈnɪkɔːl vɑn dən ˈɦʏr(ə)k]) disappeared on her way to work on 6 October 1995, in Eindhoven, (the Dutch province of North Brabant). Her body was later found in the woods between the towns of Mierlo and Lierop on November 22, 1995.[6]

In 2011, van den Hurk's stepbrother confessed to the killing,[7] but due to a lack of evidence, was released a month later. He would go on to state he had falsely confessed to get her body exhumed for DNA tests.[8]

DNA collected from Nicole's remains and from the crime scene led to the arrest of a man in January 2014,[9][10] who is referred to only as Jos de G. (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈjɔz də ˈɣeː]) in media reports due to a commonly accepted privacy code from the Dutch media.[11] Jos de G. was already convicted in other cases with the same modus operandi. The serial rapist was originally charged with rape and manslaughter, and was found guilty of rape in November 2016 and sentenced to five years' imprisonment.[5][2] He was initially acquitted of the manslaughter charge, but after the prosecution appealed the acquittal, De G. was convicted of both rape and manslaughter and his sentence was increased to twelve years.[5][12]

Background and disappearance

Nicole van den Hurk was born on 4 July 1980 in Erkelenz, Germany, to Angelika Tegtmeier. After her birth, her mother entered a relationship with Ad van den Hurk. The three moved to the Netherlands together, where the couple married. Nicole and her mother, Tegtmeier assumed the stepfather's last name van den Hurk. In 1989, van den Hurk's mother and stepfather divorced with the stepfather winning custody of Nicole.[13][14]

In April 1995, Nicole’s mother committed suicide in Tilburg.[14] At the time of her mother's passing, Nicole was residing with her grandmother in Tongelre.[15]

Mierlo/Lierop is located in Netherlands
Mierlo/Lierop
Mierlo/Lierop
Location where the remains of Nicole van den Hurk were found.

In the early hours of Friday, 6 October 1995, fifteen-year-old van den Hurk began cycling towards Woensel shopping centre where she was working a seasonal holiday position. She never arrived for her shift.[6][16] At 18:00 that day, police located her bicycle in the river Dommel, kicking off a search that lasted until 19 October when her rucksack was found near Eindhoven's canal.[6] Following the discovery, the canal and its south bank were searched the following day. The search continued on 28 and 29 October. Her stepfather denied the hypothesis that she had run away to Germany, where her extended family lived. By 20 November, police had received around 300 leads.[1]

On Wednesday, 22 November, a passerby found her body in the woods between Mierlo and Lierop.[6][14][17] Her funeral on 28 November was attended by approximately one thousand mourners.[18] Her post-mortem autospy demonstrated she had suffered two fractures to the jaw, other injuries to the head and fingers, and a rib injury caused by stabbing.[19]

Investigation

On 24 October 1995, an anonymous man called Police claiming he could identify the killer, however, the call was ultimately ended prematurely. The recording of the call was broadcast on national television in January 1996 in an attempt to trace the caller.[16] Later, the team of detectives was reduced to four.[1][16]

In February, a friend of the Van den Hurk family arrested for drug trafficking claimed to have been forced to smuggle heroin by men involved in the killing.[1][20] The police said this testimony was flawed and provided nothing meaningful to the investigation. Meanwhile, Passie magazine offered a reward for details about the killer. Between May and June, the victim's stepbrother and stepfather were arrested in connection with the killing, but later cleared.[1][16]

The Stepbrother's Confession

In 2004, a cold case team investigated the killing to no avail.[21][22] One of Nicole’s stepsiblings, Andy, would later provide a breakthrough in the cold case.

By 2011, the victim's stepbrother Andy had moved to England. On 8 March, he confessed to the killing in a Facebook post, and was arrested by British police.[7][23] He was extradited to the Netherlands on 30 March,[24][7] but released five days later[25] as the Facebook post was the only evidence against him.[6][26] Later, he retracted his confession entirely, instead claiming he believed his father was the culprit.[27][28] In a 2016 interview, Andy claimed to have falsely confessed to the killing in order to revive attention to his stepsister's death and get her body exhumed for DNA testing.[8]

In early 2011, after the confession of her stepbrother, a new cold case team was assigned the case.[6] Her remains were exhumed in September 2011 to allow new DNA samples to be obtained,[29] while the reward for the killer's details was increased from 25,000 guilders to €15,000. Within a week, the police announced that foreign DNA had been found on the remains[30] and that they had received more than twenty new leads.[31]

Research

The prosecution case was based upon test results from physical evidence and investigation of the persons of interest. The total evidence in the case consisted of the following:[6]

Suspect identification

The DNA evidence from the remains consisted of two clear male profiles; one belonged to Van den Hurk's boyfriend (at the time of her murder) and the other to an unknown male.[6] The cold case team made a connection between the modus operandi in Van den Hurk’s case and another rape case in September 2000 in the same area (Valkenswaard). In that case another young woman was taken from her bicycle and raped at knifepoint. The perpetrator of that case was convicted for the crime in 2001. The similarities between the cases gave the detectives enough reasons to compare a previously taken DNA sample from the suspect with the DNA profiles obtained from Nicole’s remains.[6]

On 14 January 2014, the police arrested a 46-year-old man identified as Jos de G. after his DNA matched samples found on the remains and at the crime scene.[6][22][32][33] The semen DNA profile and the mtDNA profile of the hair found on the victim’s jacket both matched with the suspect.[6] De G. had previously been convicted of three rapes, being sentenced to three years preventive detention and compulsory treatment for one of them.[32][33] He was known to have left his ex-girlfriend's home after a fight hours before the victim's disappearance.[34]

The “Third DNA profile”

The DNA sample obtained from Van den Hurk’s remains, was the prosecution’s main piece of evidence for De G.’s conviction. However, it was also a controversial piece of evidence, that was used by the defence team against the manslaughter charges from the prosecution during the initial trial.

Collection of DNA samples

In 1995, these DNA samples were collected from three locations; two on the genital area of the victim’s remains and one on her underwear. The victim’s body was found after being exposed to bacteria and the natural elements for nearly 7 weeks, which resulted in decomposition of DNA material. Furthermore, the collection of DNA in 1995 was done in a more primitive way than would be done these days. These external factors gave the DNA sample a high risk of contamination.[6]

Analysis by experts

Several different DNA analysis experts from different forensic institutes were asked to research the complex mixed DNA sample, namely:[6]

All experts presented their results and conclusion during the trial and were interrogated about their findings. Furthermore, communication with M.W. Perlin, chief scientific officer of Cybergenetics, about his opinion on the matter was used during the trial.

Several computer software programs were used by the experts for the DNA analysis. These programs analyze DNA profiles using statistical methods, a process called probabilistic genotyping. The programs that were used are:[6]

Test results

The three DNA samples were analysed by the experts, but the results were inconclusive as the samples contained complex mixes of DNA profiles. However, the samples contained two clear distinctive DNA profiles from two males—believed by experts to be a match to De G. and Van den Hurk's then-boyfriend. But, apart from the two clear DNA profiles, also some peaks were detected that did not match the two males.[6]

This resulted in the speculation of at least one other suspect, which possibly could be responsible for the killing of the victim instead of De G. It took the DNA experts multiple years to come to a conclusion, and during this time wild speculations were made by the media, the defence team and the prosecution. The explanation from the experts about the inconclusive test results was misinterpreted by many as evidence for a “third DNA profile”. Mainly Nicole’s stepfather and stepbrother were accused of being involved in her murder.

Final trial conclusion

The DNA results of the complex DNA mix consisted of two distinctive DNA profiles and a set of peaks, which were inconclusive. Relatively quickly, the court came to the conclusion that beyond a reasonable doubt the two distinctive profiles were from Jos de G. and her then-boyfriend. However, the discussion about the set of peaks would take years and they were the reason for the prosecution to appeal the court’s initial verdict. The possible reason for the existence of these peaks were:[6]

  1. Contamination and DNA degradation (from the DNA collection or before collection by external factors on the remains).
  2. One or more contributors to the DNA sample, other than the suspect, then-boyfriend or victim.

During the appeal, the Supreme Court concluded that the second possibility was highly unlikely, based on the context and the results from the tactical investigations and forensic research of the case. Therefore, the possibility of at least one more contributor to the DNA sample was eventually rejected by the Supreme Court on 21 April 2020.[6]

Trial

Court Proceedings

When the case first came to court in April 2014, De G.'s lawyer disputed the DNA evidence, as DNA from other people, including Van den Hurk's ex-boyfriend, was also found on her remains.[35] His lawyer argued that Van den Hurk may have had consensual sex with De G., as she had multiple sexual partners, and even may have been pregnant when she died.[36][37]

In July 2014, the parquet (public prosecution) dropped the murder charge against De G. in favour of manslaughter and rape charges.[3][38]

At another hearing in October 2015, De G. claimed to have never met the victim and denied contact with Van den Hurk at the time of her disappearance. Due to the hard evidence against this statement, the suspect and his defence team argued that Van den Hurk may have had consensual sex with De G. a few days before her murder and he was not able to remember the event due to his rough lifestyle at that moment.[6][39]

Trial

De G.'s trial began on 2 November 2015.[40] Prosecution experts testified to the DNA evidence.[41] Later in the month, the trial was suspended for two weeks during investigation into a witness's statement that De G. had confessed to killing a girl.[42][43] In a later interview, the witness and another person said De G. had made this confession while the three were in a mental institution together a decade earlier.[43] De G.'s attorney argued this testimony was motivated by the €15,000 reward.[44]

A trace of semen containing DNA from at least two persons—believed by experts to be De G., Van den Hurk's then-boyfriend and possibly a third suspect—had been found on her remains.[8][45] With experts disagreeing on the reliability of the sample and the conclusions that could be drawn from the test results, it was announced in March 2016 that scientists would re-analyse the DNA results using new methods.[8]

On 19 April 2016, the court heard that it was 2.28 million times more likely than not that De G. was one of the people whose DNA was found on the remains.[46]

Verdict

On 12 October 2016, the prosecution demanded that De G. receive fourteen years' imprisonment, asserting that he could not have had consensual sex with Van den Hurk, arguing that she had no time for a second relationship.[47]

On 21 November 2016, De G. was found guilty of rape but acquitted of manslaughter. The court sentenced the serial rapist to five years' imprisonment.[4] In determining the penalty, the court took into account the finding that he was legally insane at the time of the crime.[48] He was acquitted of manslaughter on the basis of the possibility of another suspect as the killer in this case, which could not be ruled out based on the test results of the complicated DNA mix.[6]

Appeal and Supreme Court

The public prosecution appealed against De G.'s acquittal shortly after the trial ended.[49] The appeal case began on 28 August 2018.[19][50] On 29 August, the prosecution demanded a sentence of fourteen years' imprisonment, as they had done in the initial trial.[51] On 9 October, the acquittal was overturned and De G. was sentenced to twelve years' imprisonment for the rape and manslaughter of Van den Hurk.[12] The sentence was upheld by the Supreme Court on 16 June 2020.[52]

See also

Further reading

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Beenen, Carin (17 March 2011). "Chronologisch overzicht moordzaak Nicole van den Hurk" [Timeline of Nicole van den Hurk murder case]. Eindhovens Dagblad (ED.nl) (in Dutch). Netherlands. Retrieved 24 July 2017.
  2. 1 2 "Dit moet je weten over de zaak-Nicole van den Hurk" [Here's what you need to know about the Nicole van den Hurk case]. NU.nl (in Dutch). Netherlands. 21 November 2016. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  3. 1 2 Newmark, Zack (4 July 2014). "Homicide charge dropped in Van Den Hurk murder". NL Times (nltimes.nl). Retrieved 9 August 2017.
  4. 1 2 3 Newmark, Zack (21 November 2016). "Jos de G. guilty of rape, not murder in '95 death of Nicole van den Hurk". NL Times (nltimes.nl). Retrieved 9 August 2017.
  5. 1 2 3 "Dood Nicole van den Hurk". www.rechtspraak.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved 11 January 2023.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 Raad voor de Rechtspraak (21 April 2020). "Conclusie AG. Cold case: de verkrachting en doodslag van Nicole van den Hurk in 1995". linkeddata.overheid.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved 11 January 2023 – via Rechtspraak.nl.
  7. 1 2 3 Young, Richard (18 March 2011). "Cold case murder – Stevenage man hands himself in". The Comet/Comet 24 (thecomet.net). Archived from the original on 29 July 2017. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
  8. 1 2 3 4 Maas, Amy (10 April 2016). "Dutch police turn to Kiwi scientists to help solve 1995 cold case". Stuff.co.nz. New Zealand. Retrieved 25 June 2017.
  9. ↑ "Aanhouding voor 18 jaar oude moord op Nicole van den Hurk" [Arrest made in 18-year-old murder case]. NU.nl (in Dutch). Netherlands. 17 January 2014. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  10. ↑ "Verdachte moord Nicole van den Hurk is tbs'er" [Nicole van den Hurk murder suspect is psychiatric patient]. NU.nl (in Dutch). Netherlands. 21 January 2014. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  11. ↑ DBNL. "N.N., Cees H., Willem Holleeder Moeten verdachten met initialen worden aangeduid? Frank J., Onze Taal. Jaargang 83". DBNL (in Dutch). Retrieved 11 January 2023.
  12. 1 2 "In hoger beroep 12 jaar cel voor verkrachten en doden Nicole van den Hurk". www.nu.nl (in Dutch). 9 October 2018. Retrieved 9 October 2018.
  13. ↑ "Ad van den Hurk niet de vader van Nicole" [Ad van den Hurk not the father of Nicole]. Eindhovens Dagblad (ED.nl) (in Dutch). Eindhoven. 24 May 1996. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  14. 1 2 3 Belleman, Saskia (2 November 2015). "Familie Nicole hoopt op einde lijdensweg" [Nicole's family hope for end to agony]. De Telegraaf (telegraaf.nl) (in Dutch).
  15. ↑ "Vrijspraak Jos de G. voor doden Nicole van den Hurk, 5 jaar voor verkrachting" [Jos de G. acquitted of manslaughter of Nicole van den Hurk, gets 5 years for rape]. Boevennieuws.nl (in Dutch). Netherlands. 21 November 2016. Archived from the original on 10 August 2017. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  16. 1 2 3 4 Graven, Henrieke (18 March 2011). "De zaak Nicole van den Hurk op een rij". Omroep Brabant (omroepbrabant.nl) (in Dutch). Eindhoven. Retrieved 24 July 2017.
  17. ↑ "Na 21 jaar komt OM met strafeis in moordzaak Nicole van den Hurk". Nederlandse Omroep Stichting (NOS.nl) (in Dutch). Netherlands. 12 October 2016. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
  18. ↑ "Belangstelling uitvaart Nicole enorm". Eindhovens Dagblad (ED.nl) (in Dutch). Eindhoven. 29 November 1995. Archived from the original on 21 February 2014. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  19. 1 2 "Alles draait om het bewijs in hoger beroep in zaak Nicole van den Hurk". www.ed.nl (in Dutch). 28 August 2018. Retrieved 29 August 2018.
  20. ↑ Deadline (TROS), 8 February 1996.
  21. ↑ "Stoffelijk overschot Nicole van den Hurk vrijgegeven". SIRIS.nl (in Dutch). Netherlands. 11 November 2011. Retrieved 16 August 2017.
  22. 1 2 Newmark, Zack (17 January 2014). "Arrest made in teenage girl's 1995 murder". NL Times (nltimes.nl). Retrieved 4 August 2017.
  23. ↑ Kagie, Sandra (18 March 2011). "Verdachte aangehouden in zaak Nicole van den Hurk". Omroep Brabant (omroepbrabant.nl) (in Dutch). Eindhoven. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
  24. ↑ Vermonden, Ronnie (30 March 2011). "Zaak Nicole van den Hurk: stiefbroer Andy in Nederland". Omroep Brabant (omroepbrabant.nl) (in Dutch). Eindhoven. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
  25. ↑ Vossen, Asja (5 April 2011). "Andy van den Hurk op vrije voeten". Omroep Brabant (omroepbrabant.nl) (in Dutch). Eindhoven. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
  26. ↑ Janssen, Hans (1 April 2011). "Justitie in beroep: Andy van den Hurk niet vrij". Omroep Brabant (omroepbrabant.nl) (in Dutch). Den Bosch. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
  27. ↑ Spierts, Twan (15 April 2011). "Andy van den Hurk: 'Nicole was zwanger toen ze werd vermoord'". Omroep Brabant (omroepbrabant.nl) (in Dutch). Eindhoven. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
  28. ↑ van Hoof, René (15 April 2011). "Ad van den Hurk ontkent beschuldigingen". Omroep Brabant (omroepbrabant.nl) (in Dutch). Eindhoven. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
  29. ↑ Beenen, Carin (9 September 2011). "Lichaam Nicole van den Hurk opgegraven". Eindhovens Dagblad (ED.nl) (in Dutch). Eindhoven. Retrieved 27 July 2017.
  30. ↑ Beenen, Carin (13 September 2011). "'Doorbraak in zaak Nicole'". Eindhovens Dagblad (ED.nl) (in Dutch). Eindhoven. Retrieved 27 July 2017.
  31. ↑ "Ruim twintig nieuwe tips over zaak-Nicole". Eindhovens Dagblad (ED.nl) (in Dutch). Eindhoven. 15 September 2011. Retrieved 27 July 2017.
  32. 1 2 "Jos de G suspected in Van den Hurk murder". NL Times (nltimes.nl). 23 January 2014. Retrieved 4 August 2017.
  33. 1 2 "Van den Hurk murder suspect a repeat offender". NL Times (nltimes.nl). 21 January 2014. Retrieved 4 August 2017.
  34. ↑ Zech, Maxime (24 April 2014). "Court hears details of cold case murder". NL Times (nltimes.nl). Retrieved 9 August 2017.
  35. ↑ Zech, Maxime (24 April 2014). "Court hears details of cold case murder". NL Times (nltimes.nl). Retrieved 9 August 2017.
  36. ↑ Pieters, Janene (2 December 2014). "Defense wants recusal in Nicole van den Hurk murder case". NL Times (nltimes.nl). Retrieved 9 August 2017.
  37. ↑ Newmark, Zack (24 December 2014). "Judge bias claim tossed in trial of teen's alleged killer". NL Times (nltimes.nl). Retrieved 9 August 2017.
  38. ↑ "OM laat moord vallen in zaak Nicole". De Telegraaf (telegraaf.nl) (in Dutch). Den Bosch. 3 July 2014. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  39. ↑ "Suspect reiterates denial in 1995 rape, murder; Lawyer: Consensual sex possible". NL Times (nltimes.nl). 5 October 2015. Retrieved 9 August 2017.
  40. ↑ Pieters, Janene (2 November 2015). "Nicole van den Hurk murder case in court 20 years after crime". NL Times (nltimes.nl). Retrieved 9 August 2017.
  41. ↑ Pieters, Janene (9 November 2015). "Murder suspect challenges DNA evidence in teen's 1995 rape, murder". Retrieved 9 August 2017.
  42. ↑ Pieters, Janene (12 November 2015). "New witness in 1995 teen girl's murder delays closing arguments". NL Times (nltimes.nl). Retrieved 9 August 2017.
  43. 1 2 Pieters, Janene (13 November 2015). "New witness: De G. confessed to strangling teen girl". NL Times (nltimes.nl). Retrieved 9 August 2017.
  44. ↑ Pieters, Janene (20 April 2016). "Journalist ordered to testify in 1995 Nicole van den Hurk murder". NL Times (nltimes.nl). Retrieved 9 August 2017.
  45. ↑ Pieters, Janene (31 March 2016). "DNA evidence re-examined in 1995 rape, murder". NL Times (nltimes.nl). Retrieved 9 August 2017.
  46. ↑ Pieters, Janene (19 April 2016). "Court hears DNA evidence in 1995 murder". NL Times (nltimes.nl). Retrieved 9 August 2017.
  47. ↑ Pieters, Janene (12 October 2016). "Suspect could face 14 years in prison for 1995 rape, murder". NL Times (nltimes.nl). Retrieved 9 August 2017.
  48. ↑ van Rooij, Bart-Jan (22 November 2016). "Toch nog hoop op 'meer' bij familie Nicole van den Hurk". Eindhovens Dagblad (ED.nl) (in Dutch). Eindhoven. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  49. ↑ "Prosecutor appeals sentence in 1995 rape, murder". NL Times. 29 November 2016. Retrieved 29 August 2018.
  50. ↑ "Hoger beroep zaak Nicole van den Hurk: verdachte Jos de G. 'ik vecht voor mijn onschuld'". www.ed.nl (in Dutch). 28 August 2018. Retrieved 29 August 2018.
  51. ↑ "Eis: veertien jaar cel Jos de G. voor doodslag en verkrachting Nicole van den Hurk". www.ed.nl (in Dutch). 29 August 2018. Retrieved 29 August 2018.
  52. ↑ "De moordenaar van Nicole van den Hurk krijgt definitief 12 jaar cel". Hart van Nederland. Retrieved 6 October 2020.
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