It all started with the podcast De moord op Patrick (Patrick’s Murder) in 2018, with a prominent role for Horselenberg, associate professor and project leader for cold cases, an elective module for the Master’s in Forensics, Criminology and Law for years.
Patrick van der Bolt was found dead in his flat in Heerlen over 20 years ago; he had been murdered and his killer has never been found. Horselenberg’s students got stuck into the unsolved case, the podcast reveals; a television producer listening was fascinated and contacted the researcher. Over the course of several Zoom sessions, he explained the ins and outs of the student project to the producer.
The elective module was initially called Reasonable Doubt, in which cases with dubious verdicts were analysed. Later, it was renamed cold cases: unsolved cases of murder, manslaughter or disappearance. They are submitted every year by the Limburg police, together with the Public Prosecution Service.
Wound
Onopgelost premiered just in time for Christmas. True crime is a genre that always does well with viewers, but this isn’t true crime, emphasises director Thomas Korthals Altes in a phone call with Observant. “They’re all fake stories, we deliberately chose to avoid any similarities with existing cases. Although, no doubt some elements may be recognisable.” Each week, five students led by an alcoholic Criminology professor, played by actress Georgina Verbaan, solve an old case: a student who disappeared after a date in a bar, a body at a gay meeting place, a prostitute, murdered and dumped in a caravan in winter storage.
Cold cases are tough, says Korthals Altes, “it’s a massive open would for the families”. Who can forget the images of Tanja Groen’s parents? In the summer of 1993, the young student disappeared without a trace while on her way back to her student housing after an introduction party at Maastricht student association Circumflex. Her body has never been found.
Horselenberg remains silent when asked if he has ever examined that particular case. One of the most important requirements set by the police is that the investigations never become public. There’s a reason students have to sign a non-disclosure agreement. The case is examined in only one ‘project room’, and nothing is allowed to be removed or saved to a personal laptop or phone.
Quiz
Early scenes of the professor, played by Georgina Verbaan, inviting dozens of students in a lecture room, showing them all the same case and then testing them 24 hours later to split them into good or bad candidates – that’s not at all how it works in real life, says Horselenberg. “Although we do select students at Maastricht, too. You want as many different students as possible in a group. Someone to take charge, but also someone who keeps an overview, someone with a Bachelor’s in Psychology, or a background in criminology or law.” The students on the show are also not shy about interviewing witnesses or suspects. Even breaking into houses or opening personal laptops is permitted. “That absolutely does not happen here. That could frustrate the police investigation, should they choose to reopen the case.”
Tunnel vision
The aim of the UM project is not to put anyone behind bars. “We’re an educational institution. We teach students to analyse complex cases. There are three important things to remember: What is the question I’m trying to answer, who do I have to ask that question, and how do I have to interpret the answer so that I avoid being drawn into ‘the tunnel’?” Police investigations – particularly complex ones – can lead to tunnel vision. Too much emphasis is placed on one particular scenario. Putting all your eggs in one basket is risky, explains Horselenberg. That’s why students are taught to keep an open mind. “Have all possibilities been checked off on this case?”
The group is given six months to present a final report. Discovery, the process of finding all the facts, takes up the most time: what is the cause of death, how were witnesses found and evaluated, who is the victim, what relationships are important, when was each phone call made? “We often find that a lot of information is missing, for example, not interviewing important witnesses.” Eventually, they work in pairs to explore different scenarios (“sometimes up to eight or ten”), which they then have to defend towards each other and which allows for renewed doubts to be explored.
Tea lights
Horselenberg has often visited the scenes of crime with his students, so that they “can form an even better picture in their minds”. And if they don’t have the facts, there is sometimes room for experimenting. “For example, we once spent ages lighting lots of different brands of tea light to see how long it would take them to burn out. It was an important element in a murder case.”
TV-director Korthals Altes would have loved to have a chance to be part of Horselenberg’s ‘classes’. “It’s fascinating, looking everything up and making sure it’s right.” He is well aware that solving a case in a matter of days, as is the case on the show, is unrealistic. “But in reality, a case can sometimes be so incredibly detailed and complicated that it’s impossible to copy it exactly on television.”
Red-handed
According to the Cold Cases Foundation, there are currently about 1700 cases in the Netherlands. Horselenberg: “I think about thirty or forty are added each year.” Almost half of all serious crimes are solved by catching the perpetrator red-handed, in 20 per cent of cases, the police finds them in the next two days, and in 10 per cent, it takes them a year. The remaining 20 per cent are never solved.” If after six months of blood, sweat and tears – “it’s a very intense course” – the Maastricht Master’s students manage to find something that could ‘reopen’ the case, and even offer advice on what important next steps could be, the ball is in the police’s court, explains Horselenberg. Have any of the ‘project cases’ ultimately led to convictions? “A logical question” – which confidentiality forbids him from answering.