Shopping mall mass shooting victims to get compensation 10 years on

Ten years after a mass shooting in the Ridderhof shopping center in Alphen aan den Rijn, victims will receive compensation, De Telegraaf reports.

On 9 April 2011, Tristan van der Vlis shot and killed five people at the shopping center before taking his own life. A man also died of a heart attack during the mass shooting, and 17 people were hurt.

So far, 21 victims received compensation, and 66 others can expect a settlement this year, advocate Orlando Kadir told De Telegraaf. He did not give exact amounts but said some were up to ten times the amount requested. "Finally, payments are made with sympathy and the human dimension," Kadir said. Many of his clients are still suffering from the consequences of the mass shooting.

In 2018, the court in The Hague ruled that the police were partially responsible for the mass shooting. The police approved the perpetrator's weapons permit, despite his known mental health problems. The Supreme Court confirmed this ruling a year later.