Drug criminal, daughter hurt in attempted assassination in Amstelveen

A 55-year-old man and his 17-year-old daughter were injured in a shooting in Amstelveen on Saturday afternoon. The injured man has a criminal record and is suspected of cocaine trafficking and money laundering, according to broadcaster NOS.

The shooting happened at around 12:00 p.m. on Grote Wielen in Westwijk. The two victims were taken to hospital. Both were conscious and able to speak to aid workers. According to the police, they sustained only minor injuries. 

The police are looking for two suspects. The area was cordoned off for some time, because of a suspicion that explosives were left at the scene. But investigation revealed that this was not the case. 

According to NOS, the male victims is Ahmet G. He is known as a "big fish" in the drug world, the broadcaster writes. Many people connected to him were arrested in the past years. G. was hit in the leg, and his daughter was hit in the foot, his lawyer Jan Hein Kuijpers said to NOS.

The lawyer denies that G. is a major drug criminal. "He didn't spend a day in custody for that four kilos of cocaine", Kuijpers said. According to the lawyer, this shows that the Public Prosecutor does not have a strong case against his client. G. is a broker for cleaning staff, the lawyer said. 

Various Dutch media report that the assassination attempt failed because of an issue with the automatic firearm the gunman used. The police could not confirm this to NOS. 

Local residents told the broadcaster that the victim's home is very well protected. The family is said to have bullet-proof glass in their bay window and cameras in the back garden.