Cold case team reopens investigation into male torso found in IJ

Police reopened a cold case investigation into the identity of a torso found in the IJ river nine years ago, De Telegraaf reported.

A passer-by informed police of a mysterious package wrapped in blue plastic floating close to the NDSM harbor on January 30, 2013. When police retrieved the package from the water, it proved to be a male, human torso. Any other remains of the deceased person were never found.

The identity of the person to whom the torso belonged has never been discovered. A special investigation team has been trying to find out more about the cold case.

"We reopened the investigation and are primarily looking for witnesses and people who know more about the deceased person. There has never been a person who reported anything about a missing person that we could connect to the murder," leader of the investigation team Ercan Turan told De Telegraf.

So far, investigators have discovered that the man came from northern or eastern Europe and died a violent death.

The torso was buried in Sint Barbara cemetery in Amsterdam west in 2013. At the funeral, poet Jannah Loontjens performed a piece for the unknown man.