WILLEMSTAD — Queendrely ‘Dely’ Lourens was released yesterday after the judge acquitted him of the murder of Gensley Jacinto Pieter (32), committed on October 24th 2011 at the Catia Snèk in Kanga.

 

However, he was sentenced to fifteen months imprisonment for possession of firearms and deliberate receiving, including the three months reduction of sentence owing to a violation of standards. Lourens was detained for seventeen months of which four in a police cell for his own safety.

 

With determining the punishment judge Irma Lips reckoned with the fact that Lourens had slipped up again during his trial period for a sentence imposed for a stick-up.

 

During the handling of the case the suspect denied all involvement with the murder. Officer of Justice Philomijn van Logten was convinced he was guilty and demanded twenty years imprisonment last Tuesday.

 

Besides the murder of Pieter, Lourens was suspected of possessing firearms, ammunition and explosives, and stealing 46 laptops from a school, or the receiving of such. He appealed to his right to remain silent as regards the last charge but confessed to the possession of firearms and ammunition, which were found during a search in his brother’s room.

 

In first instance the judge needed three weeks to determine the punishment but decided on an early verdict yesterday to acquit the suspect of most of the facts charges owing to insufficient evidence.

 

Although the dossier contains various indications to support the murder, the evidence is mainly based on statements from the victim, according to the judge. With his first statement Pieter hadn’t known who had shot at him. It was only later that Pieter said ‘Dely’ (Lourens, (editorial office)) was the shooter. However, this statement deviates considerably from that of his brother. According to the brother, in the hospital and in Columbia Pieter said ‘Tamy’ was the shooter. Tamy is the son of Aldrin ‘Ali’ Kani, who was shot dead in a barbershop. The murder of Kani was supposedly the motive to shoot Pieter dead. His girlfriend works at the barbershop and had tipped Pieter that Aldrin was in the shop at the time.

 

The fact that Lourens is friendly with several disreputable persons and has problems with the lads of Koraal Specht, makes it difficult to preclude that the rumors were already circulating when the victim gave his statement, and thus partly prompted the statement of the victim that he was shot by ‘Dely’.  “The more so now that the dossier mentions a motive of the suspect but also a motive to blame the suspect.” It was never proven that he was involved with the theft of the laptops, said the judge, and was therefore acquitted of this charge.

 

Furthermore, Lourens was first heard as witness about the bomb. He was considered a suspect after having given an incriminating statement against himself. However, as during this hearing the police officers neglected to point Lourens’ right for consultation, he gave a statement without knowing it could be used against him. He was never given the chance to consult a lawyer. According to Lips, this is a question of violating the standards and therefore excluded Lourens’ statement on the explosive as evidence and acquitted him of this charge. This yielded him a reduction of sentence of three months.

 

However, besides the known fact (possession of firearms), the judge believes Lourens is guilty of deliberate receiving of the laptops. He was sentenced to fifteen months imprisonment for both facts. He was released yesterday after been placed in custody for seventeen months and given three months reduction of his sentence owing to a violation of standards.