The Public Prosecutor’s Office in Malmö has closed an investigation into the incident involving Joost Klein at Eurovision 2024 without pressing charges.
At the contest last May, Joost was disqualified after a backstage incident. Reports suggested that Joost had made threatening acts towards a female photographer, leading to him and the Netherlands being removed from the competition.
The preliminary investigation into Joost’s actions has now been closed. Fredrik Jönsson, a senior prosecutor in Malmö, says that the reason the investigation was dropped is because the investigation cannot prove Joost actions had the intention of being threatening:
Today I have closed the investigation because I cannot prove that the deed was capable of causing serious fear or that the man had any such intention.
As a result, no charges will be pressed against Joost Klein over the incident. Klein has responded to the outcome of the investigation, telling the ANP that he was “incredibly happy and relieved”.
Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet, citing information given to the outlet, says that Joost “admitted after the incident that he lunged at the photographer with his fist”. However, according to people backstage, he expressed remorse and apologised several times for what had happened.
In the wake of the Netherlands’ disqualification, its broadcaster AVROTROS said at the time it found “the penalty very heavy and disproportionate.”
Following the contest, the broadcaster hasn’t committed to returning to Eurovision in 2025, saying that they needed to see evidence of “structural adjustments” in how the contest is organised before they would officially return to the competition.
Following today’s news, AVROTROS has released a statement to fellow Dutch broadcaster RTL acknowledging the end of the investigation.
In the statement, the broadcaster reiterates that they believed Joost’s disqualification was “disproportionate”, and that the result of the investigation means “it appears to be”:
We have also just learned that the criminal investigation against Joost Klein by the Swedish Public Prosecution Service has been discontinued because there is no evidence of criminal conduct. From the beginning we have said that this disqualification was unnecessary and disproportionate and that is now what it appears to be.
AVROTROS also says that they are “deeply disappointed” that Joost’s participation in Eurovision “was brutally ended in this way”. They say that they will now enter discussions with the European Broadcasting Union over what they called their “unjustified disqualification” from the contest.
Additionally, the broadcaster states that they want to speak about other issues which they say they have raised with the EBU, but have received no response to:
We will also discuss all our other objections about the way things are going behind the scenes at the song festival, which we previously sent to the EBU in an extensive letter of objection and which have remained unanswered to date. AVROTROS’s position is and remains that the song festival is about artists and their musical message. The EBU now has the floor.
The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) has also acknowledged the closure of the investigation in a statement published on the Eurovision website.
The statement says that the EBU’s decision to disqualify Joost “was made in strict accordance with Eurovision Song Contest rules and governance procedures”. Furthermore, they claim that the Swedish police’s decision to close the case “does not have any impact on our decision which we stand by completely”.
The full statement, from Jean Philip De Tender, EBU Deputy Director General and Director of Media, reads as follows:
The EBU aims to ensure the Eurovision Song Contest is a show for everyone and is a safe place for staff, artists, guests and fans.
Like all responsible employers, we do not tolerate inappropriate behaviour and will always respond to any workplace issues that are reported to us.
The decision to disqualify Mr Klein from this year’s event was made in strict accordance with Eurovision Song Contest (ESC) rules and governance procedures, after an internal investigation.
In parallel, Swedish police decided to open a formal investigation into the conduct of Mr Klein during the dress rehearsal, which we understand was closed today without further action.
This was an investigation into whether a criminal act was committed and not whether Mr Klein behaved inappropriately and breached ESC rules and procedures. This new development therefore does not have any impact on our decision which we stand by completely.
As it stands, there is no word on whether the Netherlands will compete at Eurovision 2025, which will be held in Switzerland next May.
Image Source: EBU / Corinne Cumming | Source: Aftonbladet
The Netherlands debuted in the Eurovision Song Contest in 1956 and has gone on to compete in all bar four contests. To date the Netherlands has won the contest on five occasions; 1957, 1959, 1969, 1975 and most recently 2019. Prior to Duncan Laurence’s victory in Tel Aviv, the Netherlands had been waiting 44 years for their next victory. Duncan Laurence won the contest in Israel with the song “Arcade”.
