De Vries shooting suspects remanded into custody; Flowers on Dam Sq. in protest
The two suspects in the Peter R. de Vries shooting were remanded into custody for an initial pre-trial detention period of 14 days, Nu.nl reported. The examining magistrate concluded that there were "sufficient objections and grounds to keep the two men in custody".
The two suspects are Delano G., a 21-year-old man living in Rotterdam, and Kamil Pawel E., a 35-year-old man from Poland living in Maurik. The younger suspect is believed to have been the gunman, while E. was presumably his getaway driver.
Multiple gunshots rang out on Tuesday night on the Lange Leidsedwarsstraat in the city center of Amsterdam. De Vries was reportedly shot in the head at close range. He was immediately transported to an area hospital in critical condition, and his condition was unchanged two nights later.
The suspects were arrested on the A4 highway after police and the Marechaussee stopped a silver Renault Kadjar near Leidschendam. “During the evening and night, house searches were carried out in Tiel, Maurik and Rotterdam. Various data carriers and ammunition were seized there,” police said.
The magistrate who presided over the court hearing on Friday can extend pretrial detention in a hearing by July 22.
Also on Friday, a group of citizens laid 4,000 white roses on the Dam Square in Amsterdam to express support for De Vries. The group of people behind the initiative stated they were concerned about "the structurally naive attitude of the government towards serious crime", broadcaster NOS reported.
A sign was also unveiled at the National Monument on the square. It showed a photo of De Vries with a caption that read: "Attack on freedom of the press? No, it is an attack on his role as a confidential adviser in the Marengo trial!".
It was a pointed message directed at Prime Minister Mark Rutte and Justice Minister Ferd Grapperhaus. It accused the Justice Ministry of making a grievous error by publicly revealing their key witness in the Marengo trial, a collection of organized crime murder accusations currently being heard in court.
The brother of the witness, Nabil B., was murdered about a week after the 2018 announcement. B.'s lawyer, Derk Wiersum, was then gunned down in front of his home in 2019. De Vries has also been advising B. in recent months.
"These are the consequences of the deployment of the key witness in the Marengo trial. Credit where credit is due. Peter, hang in there," the sign stated.
Thus far, there has been no concrete link between the De Vries shooting and the Marengo trial announced by the Justice Ministry, Police, or Public Prosecution Service. One suspect in the shooting was believed to have a family connection to Ridouan Taghi, an alleged gang leader and one of the Marengo trial defendants.