News report | 19-01-2026 | 15:31
For a few thousand euros, a 27-year-old man from Katwijk allegedly tried to incite a 16-year-old and a 19-year-old to commit serious violence. He sent them out to shoot someone in the legs. The shooter was allowed to keep the pistol afterwards, also as a reward. Today, the suspect appeared in court.
The case came to light due to the tragic death of a 16-year-old boy, who was found at school in The Hague with a gunshot wound. The weapon he used to injure himself was probably the pistol with which he was supposed to shoot someone in the legs a few days earlier. An assignment from the then 26-year-old man from Katwijk.
The boy was recruited by a 15-year-old boy who acted as a go-between for the job. Together with another suspect, he then went to Rotterdam on the night of February 3 to 4, where they could pick up a hidden firearm and instructions. The intention was to give someone a legday: to shoot as a warning in the legs. It never came to execution.
Boys as disposable items
According to the investigation by the police and the Public Prosecution Service, it was the 27-year-old man from Katwijk who gave the order. A week earlier, he had already tried with others: Do you have someone for a legday? When that did not work, he ended up with the boys from The Hague. The Public Prosecution Service is prosecuting him for inciting serious assault with premeditation. But also for criminal exploitation of the deceased boy.
A compensation of 2,000 euros and the firearm sharply contrast with the risks the suspect let the boy take, said the public prosecutor at the hearing. Young boys are used as disposable items to do the dangerous work. The apparent ease with which this happens is shocking. The client directs all misery via his phone and remains out of sight himself. Until today.
The Public Prosecution Service demands 5 years imprisonment against the suspect. The court will announce its verdict in two weeks.
Other suspects
Earlier, the 15-year-old intermediary appeared before the juvenile court. He was sentenced to 290 days of juvenile detention, of which 120 conditional, and 100 hours of community service. Next Wednesday, the boy who went to Rotterdam will stand trial for preparation of serious assault with premeditation.