Joost not Prosecuted

The investigation into the incident involving Joost Klein at the Eurovision Song Contest has been discontinued. The Swedish Public Prosecution Service reported on Monday that there was a lack of evidence. This means that Klein will not be prosecuted.

The Swedish Public Prosecution Service writes that the investigation into a 26-year-old man who allegedly threatened a camerawoman has been closed. The investigation shows that Klein made a movement in which he hit her camera.

According to the public prosecutor, the incident happened quickly and the stories of Klein, the camerawoman and witnesses differ. Therefore, it is not possible to determine what exactly happened.

“Today, the investigation is closed because it cannot be proven that the act caused real fear and that this was the man’s intention,” writes prosecutor Fredrik Jönsson. Dutch witnesses were also heard for the case. Last month it was announced that the Dutch Public Prosecution Service had reported this to the Swedish Public Prosecution Service.

AVROTROS writes in a response that it finds Klein’s disqualification “unnecessary and disproportionate from the start”. “That is now also the case. We are still very disappointed that the Europapa adventure of Joost Klein and the whole of the Netherlands was brutally ended in this way. The next step is to have a meeting with the EBU management about this matter in the short term.” 

In May, Klein was disqualified from the Eurovision Song Contest because of the incident, thus making Eurovision Song Contest history: never before had a country been disqualified while the event was already underway. 

The singer qualified for the final on behalf of the Netherlands with the song Europapa. On the day of the final, it became clear that Klein was not welcome on the Eurovision stage that evening. The decision led to anger at AVROTROS. 

AVROTROS has expressed its doubts about participating in next year’s Eurovision Song Contest, if the organiser European Broadcasting Union (EBU) does not implement changes to its policy. Several delegations complained this year about an unpleasant atmosphere behind the scenes at the Eurovision Song Contest. 

Klein himself has not yet shared his side of the story in the media. Since the Eurovision Song Contest, he has hinted several times that he wants to participate again in 2025. For example, during his performance at Pinkpop, he shouted “2025, why not?” and posted “Eurovision 2025” on his Instagram account.