18 years in prison for suspect who was a minor during contract killing

The court in Amsterdam sentenced a suspect to 18 years in prison on Thursday for the murder-for-hire of 56-year-old Itzhak Meiri. The victim from Almere was shot on the 22nd of December 2021 after a visit to the Dentist on the Wieringerstraat in Amstelveen.

The court agreed with the Public Prosecution Service (OM) that he should be tried as an adult even though the suspect was 17,5 years old during the crime. This is possible when a crime is seen as too severe. The now 19-year-old suspect was not present at the court on Thursday. The OM had demanded 20 years in prison.

The executors were recently convicted on appeal. The suspect who had accepted the contract for the murder-for-hire and served as the driver was given an eighteen-year prison sentence by the court in October. The shooter, who was also underage, was sentenced to the maximum juvenile detention of two years and placement in an institution for young people.

The court said that applying an adult criminal sentence for a minor is exceptional; they spoke of a "carefully planned liquidation.” The suspect had close contact with the perpetrates of the killing and pushed the pressure up. He gave the executors a photo of the victim and his address and gave the shooter a gun. "You see no signs of youthful or impulsive behavior," the court added.

Above all, the suspect continued committing crimes after the murder. "Someone who calculates his chances and acts accordingly," the judge said.

The court hopes that applying this heavy sentence will "help stop other minors from using financial gain to get involved with criminal environments."