The Public Prosecution Service has demanded prison sentences of up to sixteen years in the case surrounding the death of a 24-year-old kickboxer. The highest sentence is demanded against a 24-year-old man from Amsterdam who has confessed to shooting. He is also accused of extorting two individuals. Three co-defendants (20, 21, and 25 years old) have all contributed in various roles to the manslaughter and extortion.
The case revolves around a deadly shooting in June 2024 under the Amsterdam Bridge in Amsterdam-East. According to the Public Prosecution Service, there was a premeditated plan to steal a Rolex watch. That watch turned out to be fake. The robbery spiraled out of control, the prosecutors said today in the Amsterdam court, resulting in the death of the 24-year-old victim. This victim, a kickboxer, had gone to a spot under the Amsterdam Bridge with a friend and his girlfriend to chill and possibly meet someone. That friend feared that those he might meet were after his Rolex. And that feeling turned out to be correct.
Shortly after their arrival at the bridge, two masked individuals dressed in black appeared and told them to hand over their belongings and bag. The owner of the watch was held in a chokehold. Four shots were fired at the victim when he made a move towards the robber, apparently to help his friend. According to the Public Prosecution Service, witness statements, tapped conversations, and secretly recorded conversations form the main evidence against the four suspects, supplemented by phone data, ANPR footage, and forensic evidence.
Lured
The 24-year-old suspect is the shooter, and the Public Prosecution Service considers qualified manslaughter proven. He shot at the victim while holding the Rolex owner in a chokehold. Even after the victim was fatally hit and lay on the ground, he continued to extort the Rolex owner and his girlfriend. Afterwards, he bragged about it to two co-defendants. The death of the victim seemed to affect him not at all, according to the prosecutors.
The 25-year-old is accused of being an accomplice in the extortion of the Rolex owner and his girlfriend, resulting in death. He was aware of the plan to steal the watch. The 21-year-old suspect is considered an accomplice by the Public Prosecution Service. He allegedly supplied the firearms. His DNA was found on a shell casing, and he took the weapon back to dispose of it afterwards. He also knew, according to the Public Prosecution Service, what was going to happen. The 20-year-old is also an accomplice. He lured the victims to the spot under the bridge, was armed, and tipped off the co-defendants (“I’m there”). His role was essential, but according to the Public Prosecution Service, he also tried to warn his friend - the Rolex owner. He was threatened during the extortion. The Public Prosecution Service has taken this into account in the sentencing demand.
No self-defense
The defendants present various defenses. According to the 24-year-old shooter, the victim fired the first shot. He claims self-defense: “It was action-reaction.” The Public Prosecution Service sees no evidence for this. No firearm was found on the victim, and there were very few gunshot residues on his hands and clothing, whereas one would expect more if he had shot. Moreover, these few gunshot residues can be explained by the actions of the robbery victims. Also, the self-defense scenario was only raised very late in the investigation by the defendants and contradicts the secretly recorded conversations.
Sentencing demands
The prosecutors have demanded sixteen years of imprisonment against the 24-year-old shooter. Against his co-defendants, they demanded: ten years against the 25-year-old suspect, seven years against the 21-year-old suspect who allegedly supplied the weapons, and finally four years against the 20-year-old suspect who is accused of luring the victims to the spot under the bridge.
The court will rule on October 16.