German police join Bonnie & Clyde manhunt
Antonio Marcos van der Ploeg (25) and Enise Merve Bircan (19), who are considered armed and dangerous, are still at large after a tip from a witness, placing them in the German village, Gronau, remained unsuccessful, Tuesday afternoon. Police have initiated a large-scale search for the two in cooperation with German police, on both sides of the border.
The search will keep focusing on a wide radius around Gronau. 'We have been receiving tips throughout the day and we take them seriously,' said a spokesperson for the Dutch police. Because of the threat level the two pose, police operate with multiple units instead of sending out a community police officer. The suspects took off with a blue Honda CRV, license plate 71-DP-LK, belonging to their latest hostage victim, who was released in the German Ahaus, Monday night. The license plate may have already been replaced. Van der Ploeg and Bircan may have spent the night on a camping in the border region illegally. On Monday the two shot a man on a camping along the Oude Buurserdijk, when they were caught trying to break into a caravan. That evening they held a family hostage on the Arendsweg in Enschede, tied up the mother and the two children, abused the father, and took him with them when they fled across the border in his car. The Enschede family is devastated and will be counseled by victim support. The shooting victim is still in Intensive Care; his condition is critical. The suspects are also wanted for more kidnappings and violent robberies.
