Three suspects in journalist’s murder face life in prison; Others facing up to 21 years

The Public Prosecution Service demanded life in prison against three suspects for the murder of crime reporter Peter R. de Vries. The other suspects are facing up to 21 years in prison for their roles in the assassination. The harshest sentence demands went to the men suspected of organizing and committing the murder and the two suspected of recording the aftermath and posting it on social media.

“With the murder of Peter R. de Vries, the suspects have caused irreparable suffering and an unprecedented shock in society,” the OM said in the court bunker in Amsterdam-Osdorp on Wednesday, according to Telegraaf reporter Saskia Belleman posting live from the courtroom.

Peter R. de Vries was gunned down outside the RTL Boulevard studio on Lange Leidsedwarsstraat in Amsterdam on 6 July 2021. He died nine days later from his injuries.

The prosecutor said that it has been “convincingly demonstrated” that De Vries’s murder was linked to Ridouan Taghi - the primary suspect in a sprawling criminal case about a series of street-level assassinations, attempted killings, and plots to commit murder. The case has been randomly designated as the Marengo procedure.

De Vries was a confidant of Nabil B., the key witness in that case. Nabil B.’s brother Reduan and lawyer Derk Wiersum were both also assassinated. That makes this murder one of a series. “That can only be punished very severely,” the prosecutor said.

The OM demanded live in prison against the two men who allegedly committed the assassination - 24-year-old Delano G., who is suspected of shooting and killing De Vries, and 37-year-old Kamil E., who drove G. to the scene of the shooting and acted as getaway driver afterward.

Delano G. and Kamil E. already stood trial, but the ruling was postponed just before it happened because the authorities arrested new suspects. The court eventually ordered a retrial because one of the judges relocated in the meantime and to fold in the new suspects. The OM demanded life in prison against them in the first trial, too.

Krystian M. (28) is also facing life in prison. According to the OM, he organized the crime reporter’s murder by acting as the mediator between the person who ordered De Vries killed - Ridouan Taghi, the authorities believe - and G. and E., who committed the murder. On Tuesday, M. gave his one and only statement in this trial, saying that he was pressured to pass on messages and apologizing to De Vries’s family.

Konrad W. (31) is facing 17 in prison. According to the OM, he was the first person hired to gun down De Vries, but he pulled out at the last minute because he found it too risky to shoot someone in Amsterdam's city center without a silencer. He is also accused of supplying firearms, the getaway car, and gasoline to set the getaway car on fire.

The OM demanded 21 in prison against 27-year-old Gerower M.C. and 29-year-old Erickson O. for recording video of De Vries after the shooting and distributing it online. According to the OM, they did so to raise fear with terrorist intent. Divainy K. (30), accused of arranging O. and M.C. to record the aftermath of the shooting and planning what to record, is facing 8 years and 4 months in prison.

Ludgardo S. is facing 14 years in prison for planning the murder with terrorist intent and participating in a criminal organization.

Christopher W. is the only suspect no longer in custody. He is accused of knowing about the murder and motive but was arrested for a separate crime before he could actively participate in the assassination. The OM believes that deserves 3 years in prison.