€20,000 reward offered for whereabouts of 71-year-old man abducted in Rotterdam

The Public Prosecution Service (OM) in Rotterdam is offering a 20,000 euro reward for the tip that leads to the whereabouts of a 71-year-old man abducted from Rotterdam on January 25.

The victim was walking home from the mosque on Zoutziederstraat in Rotterdam when two men grabbed him and pulled him into a van, which was driven away by a third perpetrator. The police launched a large-scale investigation, resulting in the arrest of a 45-year-old man from Zwolle on January 30. He was remanded into custody for two weeks on February 2 but has so far not led investigators to the victim’s whereabouts.

The abducted man is still missing. On Thursday, the police raided a home in Rotterdam-Zuid but found no sign of him. The police previously also searched a warehouse in Nieuwe-Tonge, but to no avail.

The police suspect that the 71-year-old man has become the victim of a criminal conflict - that he was abducted as a threat or for collateral. “If anyone has information about where the man is being held or by whom, the police would like to get in touch,” the police said.