{"id":99749,"date":"2019-06-07T20:05:42","date_gmt":"2019-06-07T18:05:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=99749"},"modified":"2026-01-16T17:05:59","modified_gmt":"2026-01-16T16:05:59","slug":"gerson-f-was-so-angry-that-he-wanted-to-hurt-somebody","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2019\/06\/07\/gerson-f-was-so-angry-that-he-wanted-to-hurt-somebody\/","title":{"rendered":"Gerson F. was so angry that he \u2018wanted to hurt somebody\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cIf it were up to me, it would never have happened,\u201d says defendant Gerson F. with a sigh after the victim\u2019s statement has been read. The judge looks at him in silence. There\u2019s an uncomfortable atmosphere in the public gallery. On Thursday, 19-year-old Gerson F. appeared in Rotterdam court. At the end of a long trial, the Public Prosecution Service demanded seven years\u2019 imprisonment and placement under a hospital order with involuntary treatment\u00a0against him, for the violent rape of a EUR student.<\/p>\n

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One of the participants of the silent march in Rotterdam after the brutal attack on the EUR student in July 2018.<\/span><\/p>

\n\t\n\n<\/svg>\n<\/span>\n\tImage by:<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAysha Gasanova<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>

Gerson F. enters the courtroom that morning, sandwiched between two police officers. With raised shoulders, face down, the defendant takes a seat in front of the judges and prosecutors. His lawyers sit diagonally behind him. Gerson finds it hard when he finds that the case is gaining a lot of interest. Journalists are allowed to follow the trial in the courtroom. \u201cBut other interested parties sit in the gallery above,\u201d the judge explains. They have a limited view of the court. \u201cYou can\u2019t even see them, so don\u2019t worry about it.\u201d<\/p>\n

SM relationship<\/h2>

During the night of the rape on 21 July 2018, Gerson F. rode his racing bike on laps through Rotterdam. He drove back and forth until he spotted the victim at Blaak. He cycled after her all the way to De Esch, where the rape took place. The judge asks him at the start of the hearing about his love for cycling. \u201cI like to move,\u201d says the defendant. \u201cI can easily ride my racing bike for six consecutive hours.\u201d<\/p>\n

He was \u2018super stressed\u2019 the day before the rape, Gerson says. \u201cBecause of my girlfriend N.\u201d In 2015, Gerson met N. in a youth institution. Since then, he\u2019s been head over heels about her and their relationship. \u201cBecause of his childhood, Gerson suffers from separation anxiety,\u201d says the psychiatrist who treats him. Gerson\u2019s life revolves around N.<\/p>\n