A 15-year-old who attended school dressed as a dog, wearing animal ears, a tail and gloves, has been charged with the double murder of their parents in the Netherlands after allegedly sharing graphic images of the crime scene with classmates on WhatsApp.
The teenager, who is reportedly transitioning from female to male, was arrested in the early hours of Thursday morning in Groningen following the deaths of Johan and Mathilda, both 53, according to Dutch outlet RTL. The couple’s golden retriever was also found with suspected stab wounds and taken to an animal ambulance.
Images allegedly shared by the suspect with multiple friends and school peers showed the parents dead in their home. “You could see both of her parents lying on the ground with their eyes open. Her father was lying on the floor, and mother on the bed. There was blood visible and a knife,” one student told De Telegraaf.
Classmates described the teenager as part of a friendship group of “furries” — people who adopt animal personas — who would attend school in costume. “She wore a tail, dog ears, and gloves. And sometimes she would make barking sounds,” one classmate told De Telegraaf. Another told RTL: “They would sometimes sit on the table and make animal noises.”
Fellow students described the suspect as generally quiet but troubled. “He was very nice. Often quiet. But he also had problems,” one said. “I reported it to the school, but the school said that teachers couldn’t do anything about it because he didn’t want to talk about it.”
The teenager will remain in custody for a further ten days, the Dutch Public Prosecution Service confirmed. Under Dutch law, the maximum sentence for offenders aged between 12 and 15 is one year, rising to two years for those aged 16 or 17. However, in exceptional cases judges can order placement in an institutional centre with no fixed time limit if the individual is deemed an ongoing danger to society. For crimes considered especially severe, Dutch courts can also try juveniles under adult criminal law, which carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
