Dutch far-right politician lied on being threatened

Translated from Dutch NOS TV today:

PVV local councilor in Emmen gets community service sentence for fabricated threats

PVV councilor Martijn Storm from Emmen has been convicted of making a false declaration. He reported to the police in June last year that he was being threatened. Storm has now received a community service sentence of 150 hours and a suspended prison sentence of one week.

In the declaration, the 31-year-old councilor stated that he was harassed at night by an anonymous caller. He told regional broadcaster RTV Drenthe last year that the threats had begun after the PVV had argued in a meeting for a ban on religious expressions, such as kippahs and headscarves, in the council chamber. …

In the investigation into the anonymous phone calls, the police encountered inconsistencies in Storm’s statements.

Not present at the trial

It is not clear why the politician filed a false declaration. Storm did not appear in court and did not speak with the probation service. The judge said that she is therefore unable to assess the likelihood of recurrence. As a precaution, she therefore imposed a suspended prison sentence.