Peter R. de Vries still fighting for his life
Peter R. de Vries was still fighting for his life in hospital on Wednesday evening, RTL program director Peter van der Vorst said in the RTL Boulevard broadcast. The crime reporter was gunned down in Amsterdam on Tuesday evening, shortly after appearing on Tuesday's broadcast of RTL Boulevard.
Van der Vorst called it "incredible" to be able to say that De Vries was still fighting. "We are all praying for a miracle," he said.
Presenter Luuk Ikink explained that De Vries left the studio to the parking garage around 7:23 p.m.on Tuesday, with other colleagues leaving on his heels. The attack happened a short time later. De Vries was shot multiple times at close range. He was hit in the head, the police said.
"At one point a colleague stormed back and said that Peter had been shot," Ikink said. Huge panic ensued. "We didn't know what to do. Wen went that way with a number of colleagues, but the police were already there and police tape had been set up. We walked back, because you can't do anything, even if you want to."
Locals took in some RTL Boulevard workers. One local resident saw the attack through her window and ran to De Vries to hold his hand, Van der Vorst said. Other colleagues also went to be with him. "There are people who said that Peter should not be alone. That touched me so incredibly," said Albert Verlinde, who was a presenter on the program for years. "That love that the whole team radiates. You make something together that knocks away all boundaries."
According to Van der Vorst, many of his colleagues remained in the studio for the rest of Tuesday evening, awaiting news about how De Vries was doing, and seeking comfort together. "Peter is a dear colleague to all of us here," he said. "He is a very sweet, warm and funny man and always very involved in what happens in someone's life. This is also a huge blow professionally. He is one of the best crime journalists in the Netherlands and wants to get to the bottom of things. We are all praying for a miracle here."
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