"Ambitious boy" suspected of nursing home murder

Rahiied A. is the 21-year-old Rotterdam man arrested last week on suspicion of murdering an elderly woman in a nursing home in Puttershoek, and attempting to murder two other elderly women in Puttershoek and Rotterdam, by giving them insulin without medical necessity, newspaper AD reports. People who know A. describe him as a "family person" and an "ambitious boy".

According to the newspaper, A. lives with his mother in Rotterdam and has a girlfriend. A friend of the family told AD that she is "stunned" by A.'s arrest. "I almost can not believe it. Rahiied is a good boy. He sometimes even works through the night to become a doctor."

A family member confirmed this image to the Telegraaf. "He's a very diligent boy, with ambitions He even wanted to become a doctor." She called him a "family person". "He lives with his mother. Other than that, I better not say too much about it", she said. "But I just don't think he did it."

Two of the A.'s suspected victims were residents of Huys te Hoecke nursing home in Puttershoek, which forms part of the municipality of Binnenmaas. One woman died. Her body was exhumed earlier this week. The Netherlands Forensic Institute is investigating her cause of death. The other elderly woman survived the attempt on her life. She is "doing well under the circumstances", Nico de Pijper, director of Zorgwaard which is responsible for the nursing home, said to AD.

The third victim is a resident of Rotterdam nursing home De Wetering, which falls under Humanitas, according to the Telegraaf. A spokesperson for Humanitas refused to confirm this. "We agreed with the Public Prosecutor that we will say nothing about it."

The suspect was arraigned on Monday and remanded into custody for two weeks. He is in restricted custody, which means that the only contact with the outside world he is allowed, is with his lawyer.