Close X
Wednesday, December 4, 2024
ADVT 
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
  • Dutch court orders Amanda Todd's tormentor to serve six years of 13-year B.C. term

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.

 

MORE National ARTICLES

Trudeau accuses Tories of turning their backs on Ukraine's needs, announces more aid

Trudeau accuses Tories of turning their backs on Ukraine's needs, announces more aid
In the House of Commons this week, Conservative MPs voted against a bill to implement a negotiated update to an existing trade deal between Canada and Ukraine, touching off a heated debate. Tory Leader Pierre Poilievre has insisted that they were rejecting the legislation because it promotes carbon pricing, which he said has been "devastating" for the Canadian economy, and not voting against the trade deal itself. 

Trudeau accuses Tories of turning their backs on Ukraine's needs, announces more aid

Some Home Decorators Collection artificial Christmas trees recalled over fire risk

Some Home Decorators Collection artificial Christmas trees recalled over fire risk
Home Depot is recalling some of its pre-lit artificial Christmas trees because they could pose a fire hazard. Health Canada says consumers should stop using the Home Decorators Collection 7.5 foot Grand Duchess Balsam Fir tree with 5000 Colour Changing Lights.

Some Home Decorators Collection artificial Christmas trees recalled over fire risk

Union says deal with Vancouver police would make officers highest paid in Canada

Union says deal with Vancouver police would make officers highest paid in Canada
The union representing Vancouver's police officers says it has reached a tentative labour agreement that, if passed, will see its members become Canada's highest-paid officers. Vancouver Police Union president Ralph Kaisers says negotiations with their employers began earlier this year, and the tentative collective agreement was reached on Oct. 31.  

Union says deal with Vancouver police would make officers highest paid in Canada

Canada's high court to rule if bankruptcy wipes out court-ordered fines in B.C. case

Canada's high court to rule if bankruptcy wipes out court-ordered fines in B.C. case
The Supreme Court of Canada has set a December date to hear an appeal from a British Columbia couple who argue their declaration of bankruptcy should wipe out millions of dollars in court-ordered fines owed to provincial securities authorities. The case of Thalbinder Singh Poonian and Shailu Poonian has been scheduled for Dec. 6 after Canada's highest court granted leave to appeal earlier this year.

Canada's high court to rule if bankruptcy wipes out court-ordered fines in B.C. case

City of Penticton lifts evacuation order for homes threatened by precarious rock

City of Penticton lifts evacuation order for homes threatened by precarious rock
Kristen Dixon, director of Penticton's Emergency Operations Centre, says the wall provides a "buffer" as crews work to secure the rock, which was discovered earlier this week with a large crack, leading to fears it would break off and damage nearby homes. The city says crews are set to begin stabilizing the rock, but the work could take several weeks to finish. 

City of Penticton lifts evacuation order for homes threatened by precarious rock

B.C. sex offender Randall Hopley stays in custody after skipping court date

B.C. sex offender Randall Hopley stays in custody after skipping court date
A high-risk sex offender arrested by Vancouver police after a 10-day manhunt earlier this month remains in custody awaiting his next court date. Randall Hopley was to appear in court on Friday, but his case was put off until Dec. 8 in British Columbia provincial court. 

B.C. sex offender Randall Hopley stays in custody after skipping court date