Omroep Flevoland – News – Blunder municipality of Lelystad: boas are no longer allowed to issue fines

BOAs in Lelystad temporarily no longer have any authority and can therefore no longer issue parking fines, for example. The Ministry of Justice and Security informed Omroep Flevoland of this.

The so-called investigative powers of the boas – the special investigating officers – have expired. The recognizable boa logo has been removed from the uniform and replaced by the Lelystad logo.

The deed stipulates that boas can, among other things, write a report, carry out identity checks and arrest people. This authority comes from the Ministry of Justice and Security and is generally granted for five years.

Will take months
The deed must be extended in time, because the application takes thirteen weeks. According to councilor Dennis Grimbergen, it will now take another eight weeks before all the boas are sworn in again, he announced in the city council on Tuesday evening.

Lelystad confirms on the municipal website that the investigative powers have not been extended in time and that the boas temporarily have no investigative powers.

Good agreements have reportedly been made with the police and the municipality to support supervisors. The police confirm this, but do not want to say anything substantive about the agreements.

Ministry: ‘Issuing parking fines illegal’
It is remarkable that according to the municipality, boas are allowed to issue parking fines. The Ministry of Justice and Security does not agree with this.

A parking fine is also an official report. And only boas with a valid certificate for investigative powers and the police are allowed to draw up this information. Now that the boas are not authorized, they are ‘ordinary citizens’ and are certainly not allowed to issue fines, according to the ministry.

A spokesperson for the municipality of Lelystad says they do not know exactly when the deeds expired. The extension was requested last week.

‘Expired for months’
It is legally important because parking fines issued by an unauthorized official can be annulled by the judge. Various sources report that the authority of the boas in Lelystad has expired for months. Also on Tuesday, boas issued several parking fines in the center of Lelystad.

Response from the municipality of Lelystad
A spokesperson for the municipality announced on Tuesday evening that a total of fifteen deeds were involved, which expired on March 22. She continues to emphasize that boas in Lelystad are allowed to issue parking fines, but not traffic fines, such as a fine for driving through a red light. All parking fines, even after March 22, are legally valid, according to the spokesperson.

Councilor Grimbergen said in the meeting that parking fines are an “administrative additional tax” from the municipality for unpaid parking tax. According to him, boas are allowed to issue these levies. Grimbergen called on citizens to continue to buy a ticket where paid parking applies.