Suspects in robberies of Nikkie de Jager & other celebs to remain jailed pending appeal

The seven suspects convicted for a series of robberies in 2020, including the armed robbery of YouTube star Nikkie de Jager and the attempted robbery of football analyst René van der Gijp, will remain in custody. The decision was announced by the Court of Appeals in The Hague on Monday.

The case of the seven suspects from Rotterdam and Ridderkerk was handled during a hearing in the court ahead of the appellate proceedings. The suspects are between the ages of 22 and 26. Last year, the District Court in Rotterdam sentenced Hamza T., Eddie N., Alisina S., Younes S., Oguzhan A., Koshi A. N., and Said O. to prison terms ranging from 2.5 to 8 years.

The Public Prosecution Service accused them of committing four robberies and three burglaries in varying fashion in 2020. The robbers struck in Rotterdam, Dordrecht, Krimpen aan den IJssel, Rockanje, Hendrik-Ido-Ambacht, Mijnsheerenland and Uden.

Through their lawyers, five of the seven suspects asked the court on Monday whether they can await the substantive handling of their appeal in freedom. Those requests were rejected by the court "because the personal interests of the suspects do not outweigh the interests of criminal proceedings."

Nikkie de Jager, known from the YouTube channel NikkieTutorials, was robbed in her own home in August 2020. Van der Gijp fell victim to a failed robbery in April that year. When he came home from a television broadcast, blunt objects were used in attempt to smash the armored windows of his car.