Three suspects face life in prison after appeal hearing in Peter R. de Vries murder case

The Public Prosecution Service (OM) recommended life sentences on appeal for three men accused of involvement in the murder of crime reporter Peter R. de Vries on Thursday. The suspects include 26-year-old Delano G. and 39-year-old Kamil E., the alleged shooters, as well as 30-year-old Krystian M., who is believed to have orchestrated the attack.

De Vries was fatally shot on the Lange Leidsedwarsstraat in Amsterdam on July 6, 2021, after he had appeared on the TV show RTL Boulevard. He died of his injuries in the hospital nine days later. A total of nine men are facing trial for their possible roles in the murder. The prosecutors stated that all the suspects “played a part” in the killing and are accountable for “a horrific and cowardly act, committed with astonishing cold-bloodedness.”

Kamil E. told the secured Schiphol courtroom this week that he was originally intended to carry out the murder. He made several trips to Amsterdam and trailed the crime reporter, but ultimately refused to commit the act.

According to the OM, the person who ordered the attack, 30-year-old Krystian M., became enraged and forced E. to drive, warning him he had to be involved “because he knew too much,” or his mother would be killed.

Konrad W. was then scheduled to carry out the shooting; he was meant to kill De Vries on July 5, 2021, but the plan was called off at the last minute when it became clear the crime reporter would not appear on that day’s RTL Boulevard broadcast. The next day, W. stated that he would not go through with “the job.” On Thursday, the OM requested a 17-year prison sentence for him.

In a rush, Delano G. was then arranged as the shooter. G. fired five shots at De Vries just a few hours after accepting the assignment. He was arrested along with E. in a stolen car on the highway three-quarters of an hour after the attack.

In the lead-up to the murder, several suspects tracked and monitored De Vries, belonging to groups of Polish and Curaçaoan background. The OM accuses the Curaçaoan group of filming De Vries after the shooting and spreading the footage. They face prison sentences ranging from three to 17 years.

Peter R. de Vries’s murder was the third in the circle of Nabil B., a crown witness in the Marengo criminal case. It is believed that the reporter was targeted because he served as B.’s trusted advisor. B.’s brother was killed in March 2018, followed by his lawyer, Derk Wiersum, in September 2019. The killings are thought to have been ordered by the prime suspect in the Marengo trial, Ridouan Taghi, who is not being prosecuted in connection with De Vries’s murder.

Last year, the court handed down sentences of up to 28 years in prison to the suspects in the De Vries case.

The court of appeal is expected to deliver its ruling in mid-December.