Acquaintance of man who paid Dutch farmhouse rent says "surprised" after discovery of family

Record ID: 1436947

  • Title: Acquaintance of man who paid Dutch farmhouse rent says "surprised" after discovery of family
  • Date: 16th October 2019
  • Summary: MEPPEL, PROVINCE DRENTHE, THE NETHERLANDS (OCTOBER 16, 2019) (REUTERS) EXTERIOR OF WORKSHOP OF MAN WHO IS BEING QUESTIONED BY POLICE IN CONNECTION WITH DISCOVERY OF RUINERWOLD FAMILY VARIOUS OF CARPENTER WHO WORKS NEXT DOOR, TONNIE VAN DEN BERG, WORKING (SOUNDBITE) (Dutch) CARPENTER WHO WORKS NEXT DOOR TO MAN WHO IS BEING QUESTIONED BY POLICE, TONNIE VAN DEN BERG, SAYING: "He was a good neighbour of mine. He looked a bit alternative and yes we saw each other every day and said 'Hello' and talked, so yes it surprises me." TONNIE VAN DEN BERG TALKING VAN DEN BERG'S FOLDED ARMS VAN DEN BERG TALKING (SOUNDBITE) (Dutch) CARPENTER WHO WORKS NEXT DOOR TO MAN WHO IS BEING QUESTIONED BY POLICE, TONNIE VAN DEN BERG, SAYING: "I talked to him every day and every now and then he made things for me. And when he came in here he never came to the middle of the shed so he was a bit off. And when he came in, he would close the door every time. Not leave it open like it is now. Anyway, everyone does things their own way. And that's why he shouldn't be singled out yet." NUMBER OF SHED ON DOOR OF WORKSHOP OF MAN WHO IS BEING QUESTIONED BY POLICE PIECE OF PAPER PINNED TO THE SHED OF MAN WHO IS BEING QUESTIONED BY POLICE (SOUNDBITE) (Dutch) CARPENTER WHO WORKS NEXT DOOR TO MAN WHO IS BEING QUESTIONED BY POLICE, TONNIE VAN DEN BERG, SAYING: "I think that he lives here (in the workshop) because he wasn't in Ruinerwold, he was always here. Every morning, he was here before me. If I came here around 7:00, he'd be here by then. On Sunday or on Saturday night or whatever sometimes I had to come by because I went away with the camper van (which is parked at the shed) and then Josef would be here. Yes I assume he slept here." VAN DEN BERG'S WORKSHOP WITH OPEN DOOR / WORKSHOP BELONGING TO MAN QUESTIONED BY POLICE
  • Embargoed: 30th October 2019 15:56
  • Keywords: Ruinerwold family family discovered friends acquaintances witnesses interview reaction
  • Location: MEPPEL, THE NETHERLANDS
  • City: MEPPEL, THE NETHERLANDS
  • Country: France
  • Reuters ID: LVA001B1CK3T3
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: A carpenter who worked next door to the man who paid the rent on the Dutch farmhouse where a family of six were incarcerated expressed surprise on Wednesday (October 16) that his neighbour was being questioned by police.
    The workshop of the man, currently in custody though police cannot say whether he is suspected of a crime, was shut up on Wednesday afternoon.
    Carpenter Tonnie Van der Berg's workshop is next door and he said he had collaborated on certain professional projects with the man who he described as a "good neighbour", though he was unconventional.
    "When he came in here he never came to the middle of the shed so he was a bit off," he said.
    Van der Berg added that his neighbour -- identified by local media as an Austrian man called Josef B -- appeared to spend long hours in his workshop, saying that he suspected he lived there.
    Five siblings, estimated to be aged between 18 and 25, and a man they identified as their ailing father were found near Ruinerwold, a village in the northern province of Drenthe, in a farmhouse rented by the man being questioned.
    The family was discovered after one member, a 25-year-old man and the eldest of the siblings according to local media, sought help at a nearby cafe.
    (Production: Hilde Verweij, Johnny Cotton)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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