Bizarre Story of Apparent Abduction and Imprisonment for 9 years of Dutch Family

Dutch family found living in cellar for 9 YEARS waiting for ‘end of days’

& unaware other people still existed

The farmhouse where the family was found © Ruptly

A family of six has been rescued from the hidden cellar of a Dutch farmhouse after the eldest son escaped and wandered into a local pub to seek help. They had lived in total isolation for nine years, ‘waiting for the end of time.’

Police descended upon the isolated farmhouse in Ruinerwold, Netherlands after the son, now 25, escaped on Sunday night and ran to a nearby pub for help. Explaining he had left at night because it was “not possible during the day,” the man – dirty, unkempt and confused, according to the pub owner – said he lived on the farm with his brothers and sisters and that he “wanted to end the way they were living.”

The children and a bedridden man, initially believed to be their father, had lived concealed in the basement of the farmhouse for nine years, waiting for the "end of time," according to Dutch media. One Josef B., 58, a handyman who was previously the only known tenant of the house, was arrested at the scene for refusing to cooperate with the investigation. 

The siblings lived in the basement of the house, which was only accessible through a hidden staircase behind a cupboard in the living room, and were reportedly unaware there were other people in the world. The house itself was isolated by a canal, accessible by a single bridge, and secured by a locked gate. Neighbors who tried to investigate found that the property was dotted with surveillance cameras. 

According to the eldest sibling, the children had never been to school, and they were not registered by any local authorities. The family was believed to be self-sufficient, with a vegetable plot and livestock to sustain them. Their mother is thought to have died before the family moved to the farmhouse – “a long time ago,” according to the mayor – though some reports suggest she is buried on the property.

The only one seen off the property was Josef B., whom neighbors witnessed driving in and out of the farm daily. He would also watch with binoculars to ward off intruders, neighbors reported.

Police are still investigating how the family lived for so long in isolation and the exact nature of the relationship between Josef B. and the family. The siblings have been removed from the home.

There can be no doubt that the children were uneducated and horribly deceived, thus mentally and emotionally abused. I wonder what other kind of abuse they might have been subjected to.

Philippines President Declares 'State of Lawlessness,' 14 Dead in Explosion by Islamists

Fourteen people were killed in an explosion orchestrated by the Abu Sayyaf terrorist group in Davao City on Friday prompting Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte to implement "a state of lawlessness" across the nation. Photo courtesy of Malacañang Photo Bureau/Government of the Philippines

By Sarah Mulé  

MANILA, Sept. 3 (UPI) -- Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte declared "a state of lawlessness" following an explosion that killed 14 people in Davao City.

The attack ripped through a popular night market Friday night, killing 14 and injuring at least 71 others.

In declaring the state of lawlessness, Duterte said it "would require nationwide, well-coordinated efforts of the military and the police."

Jesus Dureza, Duterte's adviser on the peace process, later clarified the meaning.

"State of lawlessness merely calls out the military or the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) to do law enforcement operations normally done only by the PNP (Philippine National Police). Precisely to suppress the lawless violence. It does not suspend some rights," he said on Facebook Saturday.

Militant group Abu Sayyaf claimed responsibility for the attack.

Abu Sayyaf) is an Islamist militant group based in and around Jolo and Basilan islands in the southwestern part of the Philippines, where for more than four decades, Moro groups have been engaged in an insurgency for an independent province in the country. The group is considered very violent, and was responsible for the Philippines' worst terrorist attack, the bombing of Superferry 14 in 2004, which killed 116 people.

As of 2012, the group was estimated to have between 200 and 400 members, down from 1,250 in 2000. They use mostly improvised explosive devices, mortars, and automatic rifles.


Since its inception in 1991, the group has carried out bombings, kidnappings, assassinations, and extortion in what they describe as their fight for an independent Islamic province in the Philippines. They have also been involved in criminal activities, including kidnapping, rape, child sexual assault, forced marriage, drive-by shootings, extortion, and drug trafficking, and the goals of the group "appear to have alternated over time between criminal objectives and a more ideological intent".

On 23 July 2014, Abu Sayyaf leader Isnilon Totoni Hapilon swore an oath of loyalty to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of ISIL. In September 2014, the group began kidnapping people to ransom, in the name of ISIL.

They have recently beheaded several prisoners whom they abducted when the ransoms were not paid, including two Canadians.

Ten of the 14 killed in Friday's blast died instantly, according to Chief Insp. Andrea dela Cerna, Davao Police Regional Office spokesperson. Four others died at nearby hospitals.

Southern Philippines Medical Center director Dr. Leopoldo Vega said 15 people are still listed in critical condition, noting that most of the injuries were caused by shrapnel.

Officials believe Abu Sayyaf orchestrated the attack in retaliation for the Philippine government's military offensive against the group in Jolo, the group's island stronghold in the far south of the Philippines.

Philippine National Police Chief Director, General Ronald dela Rosa said the PNP has three suspects in the incident.

North Korea Murders Christian Pastor in China

Christian pastor aiding North Koreans killed

in 'retaliation,' source says

A North Korean source said state security is trying to dodge blame for the group defection of restaurant workers.

By Elizabeth Shim


A North Korean woman and hostess stands outside a North Korean restaurant waiting for customers in Dandong, China's largest border city with North Korea. North Korea could be targeting individuals in China helping defectors in the border region, according to a source in North Korea. Photo by Stephen Shaver/UPI | License Photo

SEOUL, May 17 (UPI) -- A band of "gangsters" killed a Christian pastor who assisted North Korean defectors in China, according to a source in North Korea.

The incident was an act of "retaliation" for the defection of 13 North Korean restaurant workers in China, the source told South Korean news service Daily NK.

North Korea has claimed the defectors were "dragged" against their will to the South, and that they were "kidnapped" by South Korean intelligence agents.

That's right! Because if you were going to risk your life to abduct someone from North Korea, it would certainly be a bunch of waitresses. 

There's something seriously wrong with a government that has to lie so blatantly to their own people.

A South Korean activist group has also said North Korean agents cross into China to track down defectors and their helpers.

The Korean-Chinese pastor Han Chungryeol was the founder of Jangbaek Church in Jilin in 1993. As part of his work, he provided assistance to North Koreans in China.

Activists in the South have said Han was murdered on April 30, less than a month after 12 North Korean waitresses and their manager fled a state-run restaurant in Ningbo.

According to Daily NK's source, North Korea state security is trying to skirt blame for the group defection, and is recruiting thugs and deploying undercover agents posing as defector's relatives and border traders in order to penetrate the activities of human rights activists and missionaries in the region.

There's only one band of gangsters in North Korea and that is the entire government and military.

North Korea's Reconnaissance General Bureau is deploying young agents overseas, the source added.

Pyongyang is probably planning to abduct South Korean nationals, particularly those affiliated with the military and the government, as well as human rights activists, so that an exchange could be made for the 13 defectors, the source said.

Why not waitresses?

A South Korean Christian minister has gone missing, and according to a South Korean report, the minister, who was also a defector, could have been kidnapped to North Korea.