Bonaire man Ryan Pieters has confessed to the murder of 24-year-old Dutch woman Marlies van der Kouwe on the Caribbean island over four weeks ago, news agency ANP reports.
According to Pieters’ mother, her son wanted to steal the pharmacy assistant’s handbag. There were no other people involved in the murder
Police in Bonaire have arrested a fifth person in connection with the death of Marlies van der Kouwe, a Dutch citizen who disappeared last month. The 25-year-old man was arrested in the Tera Kora the hood of the capital Kralendijk. Police also searched two premises in the capital. Three of the five people arrested in connection with the case are still in custody. The body of the 24-year-old pharmacist’s assistant was discovered on Friday. She disappeared on 21 of September after leaving a beach party to cycle home.
Later this week, the body will be transported to the Netherlands for further investigation by the Netherlands Forensic Institute. Earlier today, Dutch Justice Minister Ernst Hirsch Ballin announced that the Netherlands will help Bonaire pay for the murder investigation as the island, which is a part of the Netherlands Antilles, does not have the financial resources to pay for it.
Officials on the Netherlands Antilles island of Bonaire have confirmed that the body of missing Dutch woman Marlies van der Kouwe has been found. Police discovered her remains on a stretch of land near a rubbish dump. Specialists from the Netherlands Forensic Institute were conducting investigations at the scene all day.
The 24-year-old pharmacist’s assistant vanished on Bonaire last month after leaving a beach party to travel home on her scooter.
Three men are currently in police custody in connection with the case. The main suspect, aged 27, has now been transferred to the Bon Futuro prison on Curacao. Public Prosecutor David van Delft says he expects more arrests to follow in the near future.
The Dutch Royal Navy has sent 33 sailors to the Netherlands Antilles’ island of St Maarten in connection with the impending arrival of Hurricane Omar. The sailors are to set up a communications network and assess any damage the storm may cause. The support vessel Pelikaan is en route to the Leeward Islands, with another ship, the Van Speijk, on standby.
The three Dutch leeward islands, Saba, St Eustatius and St Maarten have made preparations for Hurricane Omar as best they can. Omar has since increased to a third category storm.
Shops, offices and schools on the three islands are closed, and residents have been advised to stay indoors and barricade their windows. Very few people still dare venture out into the streets.
Five cruise ships scheduled to put in at St Maarten on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday have set course for other ports.
Dutch Deputy Minister for Kingdom Relations Ank Bijleveld will visit the Netherlands Antilles this week. She will ask for information about the result of an investigation into the disappearance on Bonaire of the 24-year-old Dutch woman Marlies van der Kouwe, who was working on the island as a trainee pharmacist assistant.
She will also hold talks on political reforms. So far there has been little progress in negotiations on a new police law and the supervision of the islands’ finances. Ms Bijleveld told Radio Netherlands Worldwide that she has high hopes of achieving results during this week’s visit. Today she is visiting Aruba and on Tuesday she will arrive on Bonaire. On Wednesday, she will travel to Curaçao.
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