For several days, an image has attracted the attention of passers-by in the red light district of Amsterdam. In one of the neighborhood’s windows, a hologram of a young woman asking for help. This simulation is an idea from the Dutch police to search for witnesses or clues to an unsolved crime: the murder of Betty Szabó, a 19-year-old girl, which occurred 15 years ago in this same neighborhood.
Betty’s case is not yet resolved since her body was found with several stab wounds in a brothel in the red light district. Her story: Just three months before her assassination, she had given birth and, although she was pregnant, she looked forced to prostitute herself throughout the pregnancy. Lack of evidence and limited witness collaboration complicated investigations at the time, and the case ended up being archivedlike many others in the region.
However, in an innovative attempt, the police installed a life-size hologram in the window, an image showing Betty in a symbolic recreation. The technology seeks to revive the case in the collective memory and attract potential witnesses who until now had not collaborated. “It’s a hologram that symbolizes her, it’s not an exact likeness,” explained Anne Dreijer-Heemskerk, a member of the police’s cold case team. “We hope that in this way people will remember this matter again and pay attention to it.”
For many residents and visitors, the hologram was an overwhelming experience. “It’s a way of making people think, it’s something more tangible,” explains a neighbor. “Normally you read the news and that’s it, that’s it. Here you experience it,” he added. Another passerby expressed her shock: “It’s pretty shocking to see her standing there.”
The police proposed a reward of 30,000 euros to anyone who can provide information to clarify the case. Dreijer-Heemskerk assures that, despite time, some people probably know the truth about Betty’s death. The young woman’s family hopes that this initiative will not only reopen the investigations, but also finally obtain justice for their loved one.
