Regional director Mark J. of Janssen de Jong Infra broke the silence yesterday. Donations? Yes. Bribery? No, because he had never required a quid pro quo.

At eighteen, in 1996, Mark J. of Heerlen started as an intern at Janssen de Jong Infra (JaJo) in Meerssen. "A wonderful internship. I got everywhere, everything was possible. I had the time of my life there," he told the three justices of the court in Den Bosch yesterday, where he was on trial for bribery of public officials. According to justice done between 2004 and 2009, in his position as regional manager and later regional director.

Mark J. remained silent before the Maastricht court, which earlier sentenced him to 24 months in prison for bribing six officials. Mark J.did speak before the court. His argument leaned on two pillars: he put the responsibility for everything he had done primarily on his immediate director Rob A. And he himself put himself down as a victim of the culture at the Meerssen branch of JaJo and as a victim of his own goodness of always - "even now" - wanting to help people. "I worked under Rob A. for all the years at Janssen de Jong. He knew everything, in advance. I never acted on my own initiative." "Never?" asked the lawyer of
Rob A. to Mark J.

"At most once," he admitted. Mark J. climbed quickly within JaJo. From calculator to project manager and regional manager to end up as regional director.According to the justice department, he lavishly handed out envelopes of money to officials,arranged renovations to their homes, the repair of a car. He paid for the maternity shower of a county official,arranged tickets to soccer games, a screen print, storage space and even Internet for his civil service relations. "It just worked out that way.

That's easy to say, but not meant to be. You're in a flow. You're trying to get work and keep work." Mark. J.: "I like helping people and I was in a situation where I could do that. I had no wrong intentions.We didn't have to do anything in return." He acknowledged most of the gifts yesterday. Which brought his statement in line with the confessions of some bribed officials and of his own statements to the state investigators. But one legally crucial part of the indictment, requiring a quid pro quo, he categorically denied. Even though one of the officials said of him, "Mark talks down to you a lot. 'The company is doing badly. If you help us, we'll help you, he used to say.'" Mark J.: "Those are his words."