Deal gone wrong: Suspect jailed after body found in Breukelen canal
The suspect held in connection with a body found in the water near Breukelen was remanded into custody late on Thursday. The 30-year-old man from Ouderkerk aan de Amstel, reportedly named Nick B., was ordered to remain behind bars for 14 days while the investigation into the case continues, a spokesperson for the Midden-Nederland courthouse said.
Last Saturday morning a pedestrian called police after seeing blood, broken glass, and a mobile phone on Kanaaldijk-Oost along the Amsterdam-Rijnkanaal, police said. It led authorities to begin searching the canal with a sonar boat, which found a car in the water.
Divers then jumped in and found 33-year-old Zandvoort man, Bas Vijzelaar, and his black Mercedes-Benz S320. Vijzelaar lived with his partner in Zandvoort, and worked as a security guard at an Amsterdam watch shop.
He also bought and sold high-end watches in his spare time. He told a friend he was going to purchase watches in a private deal before he disappeared, police said. Reporting from its sources, newspaper AD said Vijzelaar spoke with a friend about the deal, and was concerned with the location of the meeting kept changing.
The acquaintance also instructed Vijzelaar to show up alone, which led Vijzelaar's friend to warn him against the deal.
Police said the case was still open, and they were looking for any information that could help definitively close the case. They were hoping more people would come forward with information about the case, the business deal, or what happened in Breukelen, Utrecht that night.
A few dozen leads were called into police after the case was profiled on television. Nick B. was to reappear in court on April 2.
