Mijndert Vonk was a Dutch SD officer and Nazi collaborator during World War II. He served with the Sicherheitsdienst (SD) in Groningen, where he became one of the functionaries of the notorious Scholtenhuis, the SD headquarters for the northern Netherlands.
Before joining the SD, Vonk served in the Dutch Labour Service (Arbeidsdienst) until September 1944. After “Dolle Dinsdag”, when many collaborators deserted their posts, Vonk remained and was reassigned to the SD in Groningen.
Unlike most SD officers, who were quartered in Hotel Hofman, Vonk lived with his wife in the city. Known as a quiet and sensitive man, he enjoyed singing, writing poetry, and playing the piano. These traits made him appear approachable, and he became known for his ability to extract information from prisoners without physical violence — a rare quality in the Scholtenhuis.
His skill in psychological interrogation made him both effective and distrusted. The Dutch resistance attempted an assassination against him, which failed. Afterward, his superior Robert Lehnhoff appointed Harm Bouman as his bodyguard.
Despite his outward restraint, Vonk was directly responsible for the murders of several individuals, including the resistance member Anda Kerkhoven (1919–1945) and Jan Kramer (1882–1945).
After the war, Vonk was arrested, tried, and convicted of two murders, as well as attempted murder and manslaughter. He was sentenced to death, but later granted royal clemency, commuting his sentence to life imprisonment.
In 1959, while still imprisoned, Vonk married Betje Wery, whom he had met in custody. He had three children from two previous marriages. After his release, the couple established a marriage agency, first in Schiedam and later, from 1967, in Ede.
In 1979, Vonk and his wife gained national attention for providing single women to the television program TV-Privé, hosted by Henk van der Meijden. Following public criticism, TROS ended its collaboration with the couple.
