Suspects accused of killing Somalian in The Hague deny each others’ accusations

One of the four men suspected of involvement in a fatal brawl on the Plein in The Hague argued in court on Friday that two of his co-defendants are inexplicably trying to pin the blame on him for the violent crime. Onur A. denied accusations that his participation in the fight was the violence responsible for the death of a Somalian asylum seeker six months ago.

The incident started as an argument that escalated into a brawl on Lange Poten in the city center, before spilling over to Plein just after midnight on July 21. A Somalian asylum seeker, Abdi Raage, was badly injured, and taken to an area hospital where he was pronounced dead from severe brain damage few hours later. He and a friend were attacked by a group of people, and Raage was also kicked in the head. The 23-year-old was a resident of a refugee center in Heerhugowaard.

Police in Germany arrested A. and three others in August, and they were extradited to the Netherlands. Alparslan C., 21, appeared in court on Thursday, and Mahmoud M., 23, was brought before judges for a preliminary hearing in December. A fourth man was released from custody during an arraignment in October, but remains a suspect in the case, prosecutors have said.

So far, C. and M. have made incriminating statements about A., as have a number of witnesses. Apart from his denial, A. has remained silent so far. According to his lawyer, he will probably be willing to give another statement at a later time. However, A. did say during the hearing that he had difficulty with being away from his family for so long.

C. used significant violence during the incident, the OM stated. Several eyewitnesses have made statements about this, the OM said during an initial hearing on Thursday. There is also camera footage of the violence. "The suspect behaved very violently at various times while under the influence," according to the public prosecutor.

Witnesses stated that C. kicked the victim’s chest while he was lying on the ground. Another witness said the assault was like a “football penalty shootout” in which the victim was kicked in the head and body and hit by several suspects.

Alparslan C., who is 21 years old, denied using violence against the victim. The violent actions that he committed to the man’s friend were out of self-defense, C. said. “This file shows that my client did not have the biggest share in this incident,” said his lawyer. He claims that the statements contradict each other.

The other suspect, Mahmoud M. pointed towards C. and A. as the perpetrators of the crime in court last December. M. admitted that he hit the victim’s friend but said that he had nothing to do with the violence that followed.

During the three separate hearings, the district court extended pre-trial detention against A., C., and M. All three will appear at a new hearing scheduled for March 11. It is not yet known when the fourth suspect may be required to appear in court.