Rotterdam suspect faces 20 years, compulsory psychiatric treatment for triple murder

The Public Prosecution Service (OM) has recommended a 20-year prison term and compulsory psychiatric treatment at a TBS facility for 25-year-old Sendric S., accused of three murders in Rotterdam’s IJsselmonde neighborhood. S. has confessed to shooting three men dead on the streets in separate incidents during December 2024 and January 2025. The sentence sought by the prosecution also includes a June 2024 stabbing in central Rotterdam, during which S. caused serious injuries to a man.

S. claims that voices in his head told him to kill random men. The OM notes that he has provided inconsistent accounts and says it is “impossible” to verify whether he could not resist these commands.

Forensic experts have diagnosed him with schizophrenia and determined that he is “at least strongly diminished in criminal responsibility,” a conclusion the prosecution accepts.

“This is an unprecedented case,” the prosecutor said. “Within a period of less than two weeks, the defendant killed three people and attempted to murder another with a knife.” He highlighted “the emotional rollercoaster” for the victims’ families: “Sorrow, grief, frustration, anger, emotions that clash and compete. Their loved one was taken violently and without cause. It is a grim, harsh, and unforgiving reality. The suffering inflicted by the suspect is immense.”

A few hours after committing the third murder, on January 2, 2025, S. was taken into custody at his father’s residence in IJsselmonde. He provided a full confession only after multiple police interviews. Investigations showed that he had bought the firearm used in the killings through Snapchat the day before the first murder, on December 21, 2024.

According to the OM, S.’s exact motives for the three murders remain “unclear,” a fact that is especially “unbearable” for the victims’ families. The prosecutor cited S. from a police interview: “I wanted to try something new in my life, to see what it would do to me if I shot someone.”

His statements at the Rotterdam court did not shed light on his precise motives. Regarding his victims, S. explained that he targeted older men because they “had already lived a long life.” The victims were aged 58, 63, and 81.

The defense attorney for S. is seeking a court ruling that would impose only compulsory psychiatric treatment without a prison term. Defense attorney Marco Bos argues that S. is entirely lacking in criminal responsibility and thus cannot be held accountable. He requested that the court dismiss the charges against his client. “I am not claiming that the acts are not serious or punishable,” Bos emphasized. “I am saying that Sendric is not legally responsible.”

Bos described S.’s life as “at the very least, a tragedy.” From early childhood, S.’s life was marked by “instability, frequent moves, conflicts, and neglect.” S. claims that he began hearing voices at the end of primary school, and that the intensity of these voices has increased in recent years.