“The suspect’s own sexual needs were paramount and he attached no value to the will of the two women,” the presiding judge said on Friday. Ali B was also charged with two counts of sexual assault. He was acquitted of that. The public prosecutor had asked for three years.
Ali B is appealing. He was not present in court on Friday, but according to his lawyer Bart Swier he is “in disbelief” and “deeply disappointed” by the verdict. “Ali is convinced of his innocence and that means he has full confidence that things will go better on appeal and that he will be completely acquitted on appeal,” Swier said.
About the Author
Gijs Beukers is a media editor at from Volkskrant. He writes primarily about television, podcasts, and books.
The enormous media attention paid to the case has had a punitive effect “to a certain extent.” The court assumes that this attention has had a huge impact on him, but at the same time considers it inevitable, because it is “sexually transgressive and criminal behavior by someone with status and prestige in the world of music and television.” “In retrospect, the suspect owed this attention to his own criminal behavior.”
‘Coercive person’
The court was highly critical of Ali B’s behaviour in court. ‘The impression the suspect leaves before the court is that of a rather convincing person; someone who does not take ‘no’ for an answer, shows little empathy for others and relies on his own view of things.’
The first public accusations against Ali B were made two and a half years ago. AngryBNNVara’s YouTube show hosted by Tim Hofman. It also featured other talent show leaders. The Voice of Holland, such as band leader Jeroen Rietbergen and coach Marco Borsato, who have been accused of sexual misconduct.
In the end, three women accused him of sexual abuse. Naomi (who does not want her last name to appear in publicity) accused Ali B of assaulting and raping her in August 2018. During a party at a villa in Heiloo, where a writers’ camp was taking place in the afternoon, he allegedly sexually assaulted her for the first time while she was sitting on a sofa: he put his hand in her tights and rubbed it on her underwear. A little later, Ali B is said to have raped her: while she was giving rapper Ronnie Flex a blowjob, Ali B penetrated her with his fingers.
Ronnie flexes
The court found that the assault was not proven due to a lack of supporting evidence. That supporting evidence was there during the rape. The court found this out, among other things, in a statement by Ronnie Flex. He said that he saw Ali B and Naomi having something; he said that he had not seen the rape itself.
Naomi’s allegation was also supported by the testimony of an elderly woman who came forward to the court at the last minute. She said that an upset girl told her the evening after the party that she had been raped by Ali B. What makes the story compelling, according to the court, is that the woman said she took the girl to the station on an electric bike, which matched Naomi’s statement, and that she had not brought up the details of the electric bike for the media to hear.
Jill Helena
The second case heard by the court on Friday was that of Jill Helena (stage name). She accused Ali B of an assault that allegedly took place in May 2018. According to her, he pushed her with his body against a car and then groped her. He also allegedly grabbed her hand repeatedly and insisted that she had to masturbate him.
Helena’s statement was credible, the presiding judge said. However, Ali B was acquitted of the assault due to a lack of corroborating evidence; according to law, a suspect cannot be convicted based solely on the testimony of the declarant.
The third case was that of singer Ellen ten Damme. She accused him of raping her in April 2014. During the recording of the television show Ali B and the Musical Caravan He allegedly entered her hotel room with his pants down to his knees, after which he allegedly jumped on her. In an initial statement, she said he briefly penetrated her with his penis, but later said he was just trying to get it on.
The court found the attempted rape to be proven. Danny Ellinger, Ten Damme’s then manager and friend, provided significant support. He claimed that Ten Damme followed him “like a zombie” after the days of filming. A few days later, according to Ellinger, he would die during the follow-up of the television show. Pauw and Witteman ‘he threw everything’ at host Paul Witteman. Witteman said he no longer remembers this, but believes it may be due to his reduced memory.