Public Prosecution Service prosecutes Twente 'asbestos company' for death of employees: 'Deliberately exposed'

The Public Prosecution Service confirmed this after reports from the Telegraaf and Trouw. According to experts, prosecution of a company for manslaughter is exceptional and has not happened before in the Netherlands.

The case is being brought before the court. According to the Public Prosecution Service, employees and third parties were exposed to asbestos fibres by Eternit 'long-term and structurally', with ultimately fatal consequences. The company is accused of deliberately exposing people to a dangerous working environment, and is criminally liable, according to the prosecutors.

The criminal case specifically concerns the deaths of two former Eternit employees and a partner of one of them. According to the Public Prosecution Service, that partner was also exposed to asbestos at home via asbestos-contaminated work clothing and died of asbestos cancer.

The prosecution follows the report filed by the Asbestos Victims Committee in 2019, which was followed by a long and, according to the Public Prosecution Service, complex investigation aimed at establishing the role and responsibility of (legal) persons involved in the company.

Among others, the police were searching for possible victims of the company at that time. The committee for asbestos victims says that Eternit was already aware of the dangers of asbestos fibers in 1960, but nevertheless continued production.

Eternit, part of Etex Group, produced asbestos cement for much of the previous century, which was used to make corrugated pipes and insulation boards, among other things. In 1993, the company stopped doing this, after a ban on its use.

Because there are often decades between exposure to asbestos and ultimately becoming ill, there are still people who suffer the consequences. Asbestos can cause various lung diseases, including various forms of cancer.

The board of the Asbestos Victims Committee (CAS) has taken note of the Public Prosecution Service's decision 'with great satisfaction', the organization announced.

"It is a special day for all asbestos victims and their families. The decision of the Public Prosecution Service to prosecute finally acknowledges the immense suffering caused by asbestos. The fact that Eternit must now appear in court for manslaughter is a breakthrough of historical importance. It is an acknowledgement of the fact that these were not 'ordinary' industrial accidents, but that there was culpable conduct with fatal consequences," according to the board.