Court of Appeal upholds life sentences for members of Caloh Wagoh motorcycle club

The Court of Appeal for Arnhem-Leeuwarden upheld a life sentence in connection with the guilty verdicts in a case involving assassinations and suspects with ties to the now-banned motorcycle club, Caloh Wagoh. Delano R., Jermaine B., and Feno D. had already been sentenced to life in prison in the case given the random nickname, Eris. The sentences were affirmed on appeal on Wednesday.

Eris is about five assassinations, all committed in 2017, and a string of assassination attempts and plans to commit murder. The court described it as “disconcerting” violence, with suspects who "thought they could control life and death.”

In addition to the life sentences, punishments ranging from one year behind bars and 28 years in prison were also handed out. Five of the suspects in this trial were acquitted.

The leading suspect was 54-year-old Delano “Keylow” R., who is considered to have been the leader of Caloh Wagoh. He allegedly took orders to carry out assassinations on contract, and then got members of his gang to perform the killings.

R. “never hesitated for a second when taking these orders,” according to the court. “He even celebrated when an assignment had been successful.” One of the people who ordered an assassination was alleged to have been Ridouan Taghi, the leading suspect in another well-known criminal case, the Marengo trial.

The Public Prosecution Service had recommended the highest possible punishment for a total of six suspects in this trial. The court did not go along with their recommendations in the cases of Greg R., Ferrel T., and Guyno O.

Greg R. is 76 years old and is considered a godfather and prominent figure in the motorcycle club. He was sentenced to 11.5 years in prison on this occasion. He had been sentenced to six years and nine months in the previous court ruling.

The court saw no reason to sentence Ferrel T. to life in prison but did feel that the longest possible temporary sentence was appropriate. Including a conviction in a different case, he will spend a total of 30 years in prison. Guyno O. was acquitted, as was the case in the first sentencing, due to a lack of evidence against him.

The evidence in the Eris case mainly consisted of statements by the crown witness, Tony de G., and a large number of chat messages between the suspects. De G. was given a reduced sentence due to his testimony and was sentenced to 10 years in prison. There was no appeal in his case.

The court chair brought up his statements during the hearing, calling them "clear and broadly consistent.”