Suspect arrested for killing girl biking home from Amsterdam; Same man held in sex crime
Police in Amsterdam announced the arrest of a 22-year-old man in the murder of a 17-year-old girl who was biking home from the city to Abcoude early Wednesday morning when she was attacked. The man was already taken into custody on Thursday evening at a shelter for asylum seekers in the capital on suspicion of sexually assaulting another woman just after midnight on August 15.
Detectives suspect him of committing either murder or manslaughter in the death of Lisa, an attack police described as being particularly brutal. Her last name has been withheld at the request of the family. He does not have a fixed address beyond the asylum shelter, and police have not yet revealed his nationality. A motive in the case has not been publicly stated.
Lisa parted ways with her friends at 3:30 a.m. on Wednesday, and decided to ride her electric bike the 16 kilometers to her family's home. The fastest route could have taken her past the scene of the earlier crime on her way through Amsterdam-Oost to Holterbergweg, a road which leads straight to Abcoude.
Police confirmed Lisa called emergency services when a man tried to attack her while on her way home. Officers were dispatched to the Holterbergweg in a portion of Duivendrecht just outside of Amsterdam city limits. She was found dead in a ditch there just before 4:15 a.m.
"So far, there are no indications of sexual assault regarding the victim in this case," police wrote in an update on Friday. The Amsterdam-Amstelland Police scheduled a press conference to release more details later in the evening.
The victim in the other case was walking along the waterfront on Weesperzijde at about 12:30 a.m. on August 15 when she was grabbed. The assailant beat her up before committing sexual assault, police alleged. She was hospitalized after the attack.
The suspect in the sexual assault was tracked down using security camera footage, leading police to the center for asylum seekers. In the murder, police also compiled a substantial amount of video footage to recreate Lisa's bike ride home, but investigators said on Thursday they still needed help piecing together the final minutes of the journey.
Detectives were looking for at least three potential witnesses in particular, who may have seen the blond teenager or the assailant that chased her. They include an individual riding on a scooter, the occupants of a light-colored delivery van, and the occupants of a Biro microcar. The police said they hope that these people can give information about the suspect of the violent attack, which resulted in Lisa’s death.
Through the afternoon, police said they received about 200 tips regarding the murder investigation. The police were increasing patrols near the area where Lisa was found, a spokesperson told several media outlets. “You can see that incidents like this affect people’s sense of safety.”
The crime scene is located in a portion of Duivendrecht that is governed by the municipality of Ouder-Amstel. The mayor there is investigating whether additional measures are needed along Holterbergweg, such as brighter street lighting or trimmed bushes.
The municipality is still assessing whether these steps are necessary. Earlier, the municipality announced that more surveillance cameras would be installed in the area immediately.
