Gwen werd slachtoffer van een roofoverval in haar huis
Gwen: “I’m no longer afraid of the perpetrator.”
18-02-2020
Gwen was robbed in her home and threatened with a knife. After the perpetrator was arrested, Gwen got a call from a mediator from Perspectief. The perpetrator wanted to talk with her. Together with the mediator, Gwen visited him in the youth prison. “I got to know the person behind the criminal.”
Gwen talks about her experiences on Vice.com. She had put a laptop on an online market place. Despite the precautions she took, she was threatened inside her home by the supposed buyer. He had a huge knife with him. “He started yelling: ‘Give me the laptop, I’ll carve you up! If you call the police when I’m gone, me and my friends will come back to kill you. We know where you live and we can easily kill you.’ Meanwhile, he made stabbing movements. The knife barely missed my stomach. I gave him the laptop and promised not the call the police.”
Youth prison
Gwen did call the police. Because of the fingerprints he left behind, it was easy to find the perpetrator. He was arrested and ended up in a youth prison. Gwen picked her life back up again. And then, she was called by a mediator from Perspectief. The perpetrator wanted to talk to her, and wanted to know if she was open to it. She was curious what he had to say, so she accepts the invitation and meets with the mediator for an intake. Later, she visits the perpetrator in the prison, together with the mediator.
“I was very anxious after the robbery. Especially because he had threatened to kill me if I went to the police. During the meeting, he assured me that he never planned to kill me. And I believed him.”
Less anxious
Gwen looks back positively on the mediation. “It was nice, it thought it was very special. I’m less anxious now. We went through something together, it was nice to be able to talk to him about it. We talked for a long time, about two hours. I wanted to understand what his reasons were for what he did. I got to know the person behind the criminal.”
The contact helped Gwen in her recovery. “I am now better able to talk about it, and to process what happened. I have an idea of who he is now, I’m no longer afraid of him. It’s all become less abstract.”
Watch our interview with Gwen below.
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A conversation with the store robber after 25 years: “What have I got to lose?”The store robbery that Belinda experienced has had a great impact on her life ever since. It even led to physical issues. Now that she has had a conversation with the perpetrator, her life has changed a lot. “I’m very happy I did it. A lot of fear got lifted from my shoulders.”
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Jordi: “I turned from criminal to human again”“Being a perpetrator doesn’t mean that person is completely evil. That’s true for me as well. I regret the robberies that I committed. I wanted to get in contact with the victims to tell them how I ended up in the criminal circuit.” Jordi (27) talks about his experience with restorative mediation.
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Evi wanted to look the robber in the eyesAt first, Evi didn’t want to invest any more energy into the robbery that happened at the drug store she had been a manager at for years. But then her motherly heart got in the mix. 'I hoped I could contribute to a better life for him.' She’s also happy for herself that she agreed to a mediation.