The 38-year-old Olaf H., who attempted to blackmail Frits van Eerd two years ago, was sentenced to two years in prison on Thursday. A friend of H., who helped with the attempt to blackmail the former Jumbo boss, received a one-year prison sentence, among other things.
That was the verdict of the court in Den Bosch on Thursday. Olaf H. confessed that he wanted to extort 2.2 million euros from Van Eerd. At the time, H. was the owner of motocross team Riley Yamaha Racing, which Van Eerd sponsored for some time. When the former Jumbo executive stopped that sponsorship, the Limburger tried to blackmail him in March 2023.
Van Eerd did not prove susceptible and went to the police. A 42-year-old friend of H., Mustapha Y., allegedly delivered a threatening letter with a telephone to Van Eerd’s home at H.’s request. Threatening messages would have been received via that telephone.
The Public Prosecution Service had previously demanded a prison sentence of thirty months, six of which were conditional, against Limburger H., and a conditional prison sentence of half a year and community service of 240 hours against Y.
The court faulted the main suspect H. for not taking responsibility for his actions and only acting out of profit interest. That without taking into account what his actions meant for the victim. The court speaks of unbelievable statements made by H.