Suspect in Amsterdam fatal stabbing of British tourist could face 14 years in prison
The 24-year-old man on trial for stabbing a British tourist to death in the city center of Amsterdam should be convicted and sentenced to 14 years in prison, prosecutors said on Friday. The incident happened in 2022, less than 24 hours after Danny Castledine arrived on a weekend trip with his friend.
The two split up sometime during the evening of May 31. The bloodied body of the 22-year-old was found by passers-by on the Singel at about 3:30 a.m. the following day. Emergency services workers tried to revive the young man, but he died at the scene.
Investigators tracked down camera footage that show Castledine and the Belgian suspect, Nongo B., walked a for a distance together. "The images do not show anything special, but it would turn out to be a fatal encounter. On the Singel, the man attacked the victim out of nowhere. After a short chase, the victim was stabbed 30 times and cut 14 times, mainly on his head and neck," the Public Prosecution Service (OM) said.
Before a suspect had been identified, police saw a disturbed individual who had ingested a large quantity of drugs. A paramedic said the man was completely unaware of what was happening around him. He was detained because he did not have proper identification.
"There were traces of blood on his clothing and shoes." The blood was from Castledine, the investigators discovered. Police worked the case back from where they found the suspect near De Boelelaan and Parnassussweg. They were later able to identify him as the person walking with the victim before he was killed, prosecutors claimed. They added that B. seemed to be sober at the time.
Journalists covering the trial noted that Castledine was believed to be intoxicated when he was seen in video footage with B. shot at 2:12 a.m. A half-hour later they appeared to be on the Singel, though the camera footage was poor.
"He dragged the body from the roadway to the side of the road and tried to get rid of bloody clothing," the OM claimed. It was enough to justify an allegation that Castledine was intentionally killed, but not enough to determine he was murdered with premeditation or for the purpose of a robbery.
