RTV Dordrecht Crew Arrested - Dordrecht - Holland - 23 July 2004
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1. Geert-Willem Overdijking announcing the TV Rijnmond news
2. Policeman Frank van R. takes the camera from cameraman Frank
Peters
while journalist Michael de Smid takes the microphone cable...
...we were too astonished to say anything...
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5
6 
7
...policeman Frank van R. even said "Hello" to the
camera...
...it was national news and also broadcasted on RTL4...
8.
Michael in the editing room
9. Manager Ed Peereboom Frank gives comfort to a crying Frank
after 3 hours of police jail
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Friday morning 23
July 2004 round 10.00
I had to go from Rotterdam to Dordrecht
together with a team of TV Rijnmond
because the police found a suspect briefcase
near a garbage container in the Lombardstreet in the city center.
When we arrived
there, the bomb squad of the Royal Netherlands Army
already found out that the briefcase only had garbage inside...
so it was placed on the right spot...
When I walked to
the 'police-do-not-cross-line' I saw
that the camera of the RTV
Dordrecht crew was
confiscated.
A few seconds later I heard the policeman saying the crew was
arrested...
...everything
happend with the crew of TV Rijnmond behind me
so it was all recorded on video
...and broadcasted (1)... and broadcasted (2)... and broadcasted (3)...
From then the
briefcase was not the news anymore.
In less then 1 hour the arrest of 3 journalists became national
news.
The crew was
brought to the head office of the Dordrecht police
where they put them in jail.
They where arrested
because
they recorded the car of the bomb squad
and did not leave after they where ordered by the police 3 times.
So Leo also went to
the head office.
Over there I called the Dutch Federation of Journalists (NVJ)
to report the 3 journalists arrested.
The NVJ rejected
the arrest of the journalists
made an official announcement
and called the Dordrecht police.
After 3 hours the
police released
the last man of the RTV Dordrecht crew.
In the evening the
camera was returned
and some hours later the police also gave back the tape.
25 July the Dordrecht
Liberal Party (VVD)
asked the mayor of Dordrecht about the arrest.
27 July 2005 the Dordrecht police still justifies the arrest.
2 August mayor Ronald Bandell regrets the arrest.
22 October 2004 the
Public Prosecutor decided
not to prosecute the RTV Dordrecht crew.
Policeman Frank van
R.
does not work for the Dordrecht police anymore...
The Dutch
Federation of Journalists
made a special page about it
on the theme about journalists having problems with police.
Read about it here.
Leo made reports (listen
1 & 2) about this national news
for the afternoon news program
and kept the newsreader updated on Radio Rijnmond.
©
Photos made from my TV
from RTV Rijnmond and RTL4.
