The Public Prosecution Service (OM) demanded 3.5 years in prison against footballer Rai Vloet on Monday for causing a fatal accident in November 2021. A four-year-old child died in the accident on the A4 near Hoofddorp.
The public prosecutor also demands a four-year driving ban against Vloet. The footballer was under the influence of alcohol during the accident and drove 203 kilometers per hour just before the collision. The latter was evident from the data of his own car. At that time, the maximum speed on the highway was 130 kilometers per hour.
Vloet collided with a car containing a man, a woman and two children. A boy from Zoetermeer, Gio Roos, was seriously injured and died of his injuries in hospital. The other occupants were taken to hospital. “The blow must have been enormous,” the prosecutor said. Vloe drove into the vehicle without braking. “The back was completely crushed.”
Vloet admitted during the session in the court in Haarlem that he had drunk too much. “I had two or three glasses of liquor,” said Vloet, who was in the car with a friend. “Before the accident, I was at a party in Amsterdam, which ended early after an hour.”
“We were going to sleep in a hotel in Amsterdam, but made a new plan and would drive to Rotterdam. Without thinking, we got into the car and I started driving. After the tunnel, we entered the section control and I was busy with the cruise control. set to 130.”
Shortly before the fatal collision, Vloet’s telephone is said to have been used. He denies that he was active on WhatsApp and Snapchat while driving. He says he gave his phone to his friend to cancel the hotel reservation. The friend was under the influence of drugs. Vloet says that he only heard the latter from his lawyer on Sunday, the day before the criminal case.
‘I can’t remember many things’
Vloet was an important player of Heracles at the time of the accident. He made a brief return to the club a few months after the accident, but his return led to angry reactions from supporters. He later left for FC Astana in Kazakhstan. He has been playing for FK Ural since September last year. According to him, the Netherlands had become “uninhabitable”.
Vloet’s friend initially took the blame by posing as the driver. The officer blames Vloet for that. “The way he behaved after the accident is anything but pretty,” she said.
In his own words, Vloet only told the truth “when it turned out that it was so tragic”. The officer called his behavior “unpalatable to the parents”. She also thinks that Vloet has an exemplary role as a football player. “It is difficult to rhyme with alcohol consumption.”
The mother of the child who died said that Vloet had not shown an ounce of respect for the relatives in the days after the accident. “That night you made a conscious decision to drive under the influence, deny being the driver and later leave for Kazakhstan,” she said.
Officer not afraid of Vloet fleeing to Russia
Gio’s relatives asked the court to take Vloet into custody so that he cannot leave for Russia to play football as planned. The relatives fear that Vloet will not return. During the criminal case, their lawyer called it “likely that Vloet will evade the punishment that the court will impose on him”.
The prosecutor did not agree. She sees no risk of flight and pointed out that suspects in similar cases are given the opportunity to await a possible appeal in freedom.
It is not yet known when the judge will rule.
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