MIDDELBURG - If it were up to prosecutor Gunnar van der Hofstede, a 24-year-old man from Vlissingen would be allowed to spend the next six years of his life behind bars. His two mates from Almere, one 30 and the other 33, may then each keep him company for four years.

The three are suspected of having been involved in the robbery of the Aldi supermarket in Oost-Souburg on December 3, 2010. The Almeerders for the actual execution and the Souburger for lending a helping hand. The two entered the supermarket that day around 8 a.m. through a warehouse door, an employee present was pushed a gun to her head and a colleague of hers was forced to take the money from the safe. With 25 kilograms of coins and the necessary paper money - a total of 8,463 euros - the two walked to the Souburger's home. The latter knew nothing about it, at least so he said during the hearing of the case, Thursday in court in Middelburg.

The two had slept in his home, had to 'leave' in the morning, came back and left again in the direction of Almere. Unfortunately for the two Almere residents, a witness had seen the two lug their weight through the snow, knock on the Souburger's door and then have the police write that down as their statement.

In addition to the robbery at Aldi, the Souburger and the 33-year-old man from Almere also had to answer for a robbery at the Phone Home on the Scheldestraat in Vlissingen, on June 12, 2009. There that day, three masked and armed men came storming in and demanded money. With over 2,500 euros, some phones, calling cards and sports shoes, they ran back out of the store and left on their scooters. The Souburger's now ex-girlfriend received a pair of sports shoes and was quite miffed about it because the Souburger owned much nicer shoes. She felt rebuffed and promised to lump him in with them.

During the hearing it turned out that things had gone wrong with regard to the recognition of the robbers. The camera images had been put on a USB stick which had been lost. Moreover, according to the statements, the Souburger was slim. This in contrast to the corpulent appearance that sat before the fence of the court. "Prosecution inadmissible and violation of almost everything," the lawyers roared. And, "How does the prosecutor get it into his head to demand six years in prison. Moreover, the Souburger's lawyer argued, his client was innocent. He knew who the real perpetrators were, but was advised not to name names.

The counsel for the 33-year-old man from Almere took his time by going through almost all the statements again in detail, comparing them with each other and eventually - just like his considerably shorter arguing confrères - coming to the conclusion that his client should also be acquitted due to lack of evidence.

The ruling is on Sept. 4.