WILLEMSTAD – Curaçao resident Kevin de Jong (31) has been sentenced to 18 years in prison for the murder of his former partner, Carmen Melaan (31), who was killed on April 29 of last year.
The couple had been in a relationship for seventeen years, but Melaan had decided to end it. According to the court, De Jong murdered her with premeditation after he was unable to accept the breakup. In the period leading up to the killing, he sent farewell letters to a friend in which he announced both his own suicide and the killing of Melaan. The letters contained detailed instructions and phone access codes, which the Public Prosecution Service cited as evidence of planning.
On the evening of the crime, De Jong strangled Melaan in their home. He did not contact the authorities until approximately an hour later, when he called the police and reported what had happened. At the time of his arrest, he was covered in blood, which forensic analysis later confirmed to be his own.
The court ruled that the killing was carried out intentionally and explicitly qualified the crime as femicide. In addition to the 18-year prison sentence, De Jong was ordered to pay €75,000 in compensation to Melaan’s surviving relatives. This amount includes the costs of her flight from the Netherlands to Curaçao.
The Public Prosecution Service had sought a sentence of 20 years, but the court imposed a lesser term after taking into account diminished criminal responsibility. Experts testified that De Jong has narcissistic and dependent personality traits. According to their assessment, there remains a risk of reoffending should he enter into another dependent relationship in the future.
The case has had a profound impact on Melaan’s family and friends. In its ruling, the court stated that De Jong deprived her of her most precious possession—her life—in a cruel manner, causing irreversible suffering to those left behind.