... a Roermond [Holland] man [has] recently been refunded EUR 2,000 for the pistol he used to commit an armed robbery. In sentencing the 46-year-old man to four years jail last week, Breda Court also ordered him to repay the EUR 6,600 he stole from a bank in the Brabant town of Chaam. But the man had the price of the pistol he bought for the robbery deducted from the amount he was forced to repay. .... it is possible for criminals to have the cost incurred in committing a crime deducted from their sentences ... A spokeswoman for the Breda public prosecutor's office ... said the costs must have a direct relationship to the criminal offence, and be costs that a criminal otherwise would not have incurred. .... the law stipulates that the financial situation of the bank robber after the sentence is imposed must be the same as what it was prior to the crime. ....
Another example would be the costs a criminal incurs in a cannabis plantation. If the plantation is seized by police, the criminal can identify to authorities what costs were incurred in setting up the crop and gain compensation. ....