Hate crime: Man arrested for trying to hit gay Drimmelen mayor with his car

The police arrested a 76-year-old man for trying to hit Mayor Boy Scholtze of Drimmelen in Noord-Brabant with his car on Monday morning as he walked from the town hall to his car. The mayor had to jump out of the way to avoid being hit, the police said. The man also shouted homophobic slurs at the gay Scholtze.

Outgoing Minister of Justice Dilan Yeşilgöz called it “horrible” that Scholtze had been attacked. “In the Netherlands, you can be who you are and love who you want,” she wrote on X.

Fellow mayors also expressed their support on social media. Wouter Kolff of Dordrecht called the incident “bizarre.” Sjoerd Potters from De Bilt wrote: “Let us all stand squarely behind my colleague Boy Scholtze and never, ever bow to intimidation and violence.” Charlie Aptroot from Wijdemeren supported Scholtze: “Know that your colleagues and undoubtedly also the residents support you and completely reject such behavior,” he wrote.

Before the man - a resident of Made, a village that falls under Drimmelen - tried to run over Scholtze, he shouted threats and insults at the mayor from his car. After the confrontation in the parking lot, the attacker entered the town hall despite being prohibited from entering. At the counter, he repeated his threats.

Scholtze, 32, has been mayor of the Noord-Brabant municipality since December last year. He is openly gay and married to a man. According to the police, the threats were related to his orientation. Scholtze has pressed charges of threat, attempted aggravated assault, insult, and discrimination, the police said.

“Not a nice start to the week, unfortunately,” Scholtze himself said on X. “So unnecessary and so pointless. Aggression, intimidation, and violence are never a solution and have no place in society.”

It is not the first time that the mayor has faced threats. In June, someone threw a paving stone through a window of his home at night.