14 Year Old Boy Admits to Stabbing Parents to Death – Crime Psychology

September 2017

The bodies of Jos Verdonk and Margreet Andriol, 63 and 62 years old, were found on tuesday morning, the 26^th of September. Their bodies were discovered by their neighbor – who wishes to remain unnamed – and violently assaulted with a knife.

parenticide murder abnormal psychology crime psychology — police investigations started immediately. Inhabitants of Katlijk try to comfort each other where possible. (c) ANP

This stabbing incident has made the news in a widespread area – double parenticide is a rare type of murder. The village where they lived, Katlijk, is situated in the north of the Netherlands, where all three lived in a converted farm building. Jos and Margreet seemed to be loved by most people who knew them, and the village is grieving. “This event has made a big impression,” said Tjeerd van der Zwan, mayor of the municipality of Heerenveen in which the 600 inhabitant village is situated. “The most important thing right now is what the inhabitants of Katlijk need. We have the deepest sympathy for anyone affected.”

parent stabbing murders murder crime psychology — Margreet Andriol, 62, one of the victims of the violent stabbing incident.

The boy seemed to have disappeared since the bodies were found, but on the evening of the 26^th he was taken into custody as the only possible suspect till then. Some say he had been known to have had some problems, but exactly what these were is as of yet unclear. Whatever could have lead to him stabbing both of his parents to death?

You might be interested in: What is your mental age? QUIZ

“He hadn’t been to school. That’s why some employees of the school board were headed this way. That’s when I discovered them,” says the neighbor who found the bodies. Furthermore the man stated: “I’m not surprised he has confessed, it was one of my first thoughts when I found his parents.”

crime psychology parenticide murder — The bodies were found in the morning, the suspected culprit, their son, was taken into custody the same evening. (c) ANP

On the 29^th of September the boy made a formal statement to the police investigators in which he confesses to murdering his parents by stabbing them. The family had not been known by the authorities beforehand. They hadn’t had any previously documented incidents.

The public prosecution department of the Netherlands stated that since he is a minor, his name will not been made public, and the case will be conducted behind closed doors.

He will remain in custody for the time being. Because of his confession he has been transferred to a Juvenile Detention Centre, where he will remain until his case can appear in front of the legal court. Authorities estimate this will happen some time around early 2018

Some people were quick to draw conclusions about his mental state. Some villagers said he “must have been ill in some way.” How do you think psychology plays a role in this?

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