Sarah 
The narrow alleys of Amsterdam’s Red Light District have witnessed countless stories, but few as tragic as that of Bernadett “Betty” Szabó. Fifteen years after the Hungarian teenager was brutally murdered in her workroom, Dutch police are employing groundbreaking technology, a life-sized hologram of the victim in a final bid to solve the cold case that has haunted investigators for over a decade.
The Crime That Shocked Amsterdam
On a frigid February night in 2009, two fellow sex workers grew concerned when they didn’t hear Betty’s usual music playing from her small workroom on Oudezijds Achterburgwal. What they discovered at 1 AM would become one of Amsterdam’s most notorious unsolved murders: the 19-year-old lay dead in her room, having been stabbed dozens of times in a frenzied attack.
Betty’s story was tragically common yet uniquely heartbreaking. Having arrived from Hungary just a year earlier, she entered sex work to survive. Even pregnancy didn’t stop her from working her son was eventually placed with a foster family. The large dragon tattoo spanning her chest and stomach became her most identifiable feature, now central to the police’s unprecedented investigation method.
A Digital Resurrection
In a world-first for cold case investigations, Amsterdam police have installed a startlingly realistic hologram of Betty in the very neighborhood where she was killed. The life-sized projection shows the young woman sitting on a stool, her distinctive tattoo visible, silently appealing to passersby for information about her murder.
“This isn’t just technology it’s about giving Betty back her humanity,” explained Benjamin van Gogh, coordinator of Amsterdam’s wanted persons team. “We brainstormed extensively about whether this was appropriate, consulting with her family and considering how to maintain dignity while achieving justice.”
The hologram forms the centerpiece of a comprehensive memorial investigation:
- A dedicated house at Korte Stormsteeg displays crime scene photos and documentary footage
- TV screens show Betty’s last known living images
- A €30,000 reward offers incentive for reluctant witnesses
Why This Case Haunts Investigators
Cold case detective Anne Dreijer-Heemskerk emphasizes the frustrating paradox of the murder: “Betty was killed in one of the busiest areas in the Netherlands. Thousands pass through daily tourists, workers, locals. Someone must have seen something.”
The passage of time may work in the investigators’ favor. Dreijer-Heemskerk notes: “People who were afraid to talk then, maybe because of their own circumstances or connections, might finally come forward now that years have passed.”
Broader Implications for Justice
This hologram initiative raises profound questions about:
Victim representation in media and investigations
Technological ethics in criminal justice
The challenges of solving crimes in transient, high-traffic areas
As Van Gogh reflects: “We always try to put a face to victims in appeals. This takes that concept into the 21st century, making Betty present again in the place where she was taken away.”
A Daughter’s Legacy
Perhaps most poignantly, Betty’s now-15-year-old son who never knew his mother may finally get answers. The hologram campaign represents not just a police strategy, but a chance for a child to understand what happened to the young woman who gave him life under such difficult circumstances.
As Amsterdam’s crimson-lit windows continue their nightly glow, Betty’s digital ghost keeps vigil as a silent reminder that some stories demand resolution, no matter how much time has passed. The question remains: Will this technological gamble trigger the memory that cracks the case?
For now, the hologram’s unblinking gaze challenges every passerby: Do you know who killed me?
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