Two Dutch men charged with murdering three Irishmen here in a horrific, allegedly drug-crazed attack last April, must undergo psychiatric and psychological tests, a court in The Hague has ruled.
Mr Michael Braxhoofden (22), of The Hague, and Mr Ronald van Brommel (20), of Wassenaar, a nearby town, were before the district court yesterday for their first public court appearance. It was decided to postpone the start of their trial until October 31st pending intensive psychological and psychiatric tests.
The men are charged with murdering brothers Vincent (29) and Morgan (21) Costello, of Bansha, Co Tipperary, and their friend, Damien Monahan (24), of Ennis, Co Clare, at the luxury apartment where the Irishmen lived in Scheveningen, outside The Hague, between April 26th and April 29th.
The accused men showed little emotion as the public prosecutor, Ms Johanna Reddingius, read out the charges against them.
Mr van Brommel's lawyer told judges: "This is a most terrible case, and my client is glad that a detailed psychiatric examination will take place, because he wants to know what happened there [in the apartment]."
Earlier, the public prosecutor had described how the two accused men, using a pistol or another handgun, shot their three victims dead and stabbed them in the neck and upper body in "a planned and premeditated crime".
They had poured flammable liquid over the bodies in an attempt to destroy them and disguise the cause of death, she said.
Both men are also charged with arson and with endangering the lives of residents of the apartment block where the murders took place. They face charges of armed robbery, one of which was allegedly committed by Mr Braxhoofden after the murders of the Irishmen.
Mr van Brommel is also charged with being an accessory to murder.
The chairman of the three-judge panel, Ms J.F. van Daal, set the trial date for October 31st, saying it would take a considerable time before the psychiatric and psychological tests on both men were completed.
It is expected that family members of the victims will attend the trial, a court source indicated yesterday.