Suspected Rotterdam serial attacker now linked to 13 sexual assaults

Prosecutors plan to add ten more cases to the charges against the suspected Rotterdam serial groper. This would bring the total number of assaults police and prosecutors attribute to the 31-year-old man to 13.

The Public Prosecution Service announced this Wednesday at the first public preliminary hearing in the criminal case against the man, Nabil I. According to the prosecution, he has so far refused to make any statements. He also remained silent in the courtroom.

The initial charges of three assaults stem from late December last year. Media coverage of the incidents prompted additional reports from women who said they had been victims of I., and this eventually led to the identification of the suspect.

I., who has no permanent residence, was detained in Barcelona on April 13, 2025, during a routine police check, when Catalan authorities discovered an international arrest warrant had been issued for him. He was then extradited to the Netherlands.

According to the Public Prosecution Service, the suspect always operated in the same way. He moved around on a bicycle in Rotterdam-Noord and the city center, and ambushed the women unexpectedly, mostly during late-night and early-morning nightlife hours. He was identified via CCTV footage by the boss of the company where he worked under a false name and by one of the victims.

The defense lawyer for Nabil I. has asked for his client’s pretrial detention to be lifted. While I. participated in DNA testing, his lawyer says it yielded no evidence linking him to the assaults. The court denied the request to release Nabil I., citing strong suspicions that justify continued detention.

While the case was being heard, police in the city added that a separate serial sexual offender is being sought in the IJsselmonde district. Ten different victims, including at least one pre-teen girl, identified a man on a scooter in a series of harassment and assault incidents, which took place between July and early September.

The next preliminary hearing is scheduled for December 18.