National

Dutch court orders Amanda Todd's tormentor to serve six years of 13-year B.C. term

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 21 Dec, 2023 11:40 AM

The man who extorted and bullied British Columbia teenager Amanda Todd into suicide has had his 13-year sentence from a Canadian court converted to a six-year prison term in Europe.

An Amsterdam court handed Aydin Coban the six-year sentence on Thursday, which is the maximum allowed under Dutch law and is longer than the 4 1/2 years prosecutors recommended to the court in July.

Todd was 15 when she died by suicide at her home in Metro Vancouver in October 2012, weeks after posting a video watched by millions around the world describing being harassed and extorted by an online predator.

Coban was convicted in B.C. Supreme Court last year on charges of child pornography, child luring and criminal harassment after the court heard he blackmailed Todd to expose herself in front of a webcam.

He was already serving an 11-year sentence in the Netherlands after being convicted on similar charges involving the online extortion of 33 young girls and gay men.

The sentence imposed Thursday will be served after he completes his current prison time next year.

Robert Malewicz, Coban's lawyer, had argued his client shouldn't get any extra time in prison for the Todd case.

He called the Canadian sentence “exorbitantly high, even by Canadian standards” and said if the court decided to give Coban extra prison time, it should be no more than one year with six months suspended.

Malewicz said after the sentencing that he would appeal the decision to the Dutch Supreme Court.

Coban wasn’t present in Amsterdam District Court for the brief hearing to announce the sentence. He was born in 1978, according to court documents, making him 44 or 45.

He was extradited from the Netherlands to Canada in 2020 to stand trial on charges linked to the Todd case, but only on condition that his sentence would be served in a Dutch prison.

That meant that prison time imposed by the B.C. court last year had to be converted into a sentence in the Netherlands.

An information sheet by the Netherlands’ Ministry of Justice shows Dutch prisoners who are sent home after being convicted and sentenced abroad can either have prison terms commuted to the length of time they would have received for their crime in the Netherlands, or the term would be continued and served in full.

But a continued sentence “may never exceed the maximum sentence for the relevant crime in the Netherlands,” the document says.

Coban was returned to the Netherlands from Canada in November 2022 following his conviction and sentencing in B.C.

Prev Next

MORE National ARTICLES

Federal budget includes $59.5B in new spending

To alleviate the pressure of rising grocery prices, the federal government has extended the GST rebate boost offered in the fall. The rebate, which will go to lower income Canadians, will deliver up to $234 to a single person and up to $467 to a couple with two children.

Federal budget includes $59.5B in new spending

Dental program cost set to more than double

That benefit will be scrapped by June 2024. In its place, Tuesday's budget shows the Liberals are planning a government-administered insurance program, at a cost of $13 billion over five years beginning in fiscal year 2023-24.

Dental program cost set to more than double

B.C. councillor resigns, called mayor 'Mr. Hitler'

At a March 20 meeting, Smyth took issue with a decision not to livestream advisory committee meetings about an official community plan or release committee members' CVs. Smyth said the move was done in a "very political way," something that was denied by Mayor Peter Jones who said it was a "practical approach" before ending questions.

B.C. councillor resigns, called mayor 'Mr. Hitler'

B.C. to secure access to drug of social media fame

Adrian Dix said in January that the government would be investigating why almost 10 per cent of prescriptions for the drug in B.C. were filled for American citizens. Dix said at the time that the dramatic increase in demand for the diabetes drug was partly because of social media "influencers" who spoke about its weight loss benefits.

B.C. to secure access to drug of social media fame

Unprecedented construction needed in B.C.: Report

The province must build 25 per cent more new homes than usual for the next five years to address deteriorating housing affordability. The association said construction needs to be ramped up to a record 43,000 housing completions a year for the next five years to counteract rapid population growth.

Unprecedented construction needed in B.C.: Report

Burnaby RCMP seeks man wanted on BC-wide arrest warrant: Manveer Singh Dhesi

28-year-old Manveer Singh Dhesi, who is known to reside in Surrey but spend time in Burnaby, is wanted in relation to several charges including assault, uttering threats, and mischief. Burnaby RCMP is appealing for tips on his whereabouts as investigators work to locate him.