Ajax fans sentenced to 16 days in prison after violence against police

Four Ajax supporters were sentenced to 16 days in jail for their involvement in the riots that broke out last Sunday after the abandoned match against Feyenoord. One fan must serve a 15-day jail sentence, and another supporter of the football club was acquitted for lack of convincing evidence.

The sentences were significantly lower than the prosecution (OM) had demanded in the Amsterdam court. The OM demanded prison sentences of six or seven months, including two months of probation, as well as a five-year ban from the Johan Cruijff ArenA for all six supporters, De Telegraaf reported. However, the convicted Ajax supporters will be released on Monday because they have already been in custody for 12 and 13 days.

The six fans who faced the magistrate were suspected of violence against police officers. The convicted fans confessed to throwing stones or other objects at the police. They expressed their regret and said they had been under the influence of alcohol after the abandoned match.

They also said they acted out of emotion and frustration over their club's poor results. They will also have to perform up to 100 hours of community service and attend an alcohol course. Ajax imposed a one-and-a-half-year stadium ban on the four suspects with season tickets. One convicted fan without a season ticket is banned from the Johan Cruijff ArenA for a year.

One of the convicts, a 19-year-old stone thrower from Krommenie, came to some realizations during his time in custody, De Telegraaf reported. "I now see how serious what I did is and the impact it has on police officers," he said in court.

Reportedly, none of the convicts are from Amsterdam. The Ajax supporters, who are between 19 and 29 years old, live in Grootebroek, Krimpen aan den IJssel, Wervershoof, Hardinxveld-Giessendam, and Krommenie. The acquitted supporter, however, is 34 years old and lives in The Hague.

After the abandoned match with Feyenoord, hundreds of Ajax supporters stormed the main entrance of the Johan Cruijff ArenA and pelted the police. As a result, two officers were injured.

During the trial, the prosecutor read out statements from officers who felt they were in a war zone. The magistrate described the violence against the police as a very serious matter and hoped that the sentences imposed would have a deterrent effect.