Four complaints were received about Hammerstein from the period that Hammerstein assisted Nabil B., the key witness in the Marengo case against Ridouan Taghi. One of the complaints was from lawyer Khalid Kasem, who was suspected of having links with Taghi. Kasem believes that Hammerstein has tried to blacken him. Peter R. De Vries also filed a complaint for that reason, as did the dean of lawyers.
Harsh words
The Council of Discipline speaks harshly about Hammerstein. “He has not taken sufficient account of the legitimate interests of third parties. He has also not been sympathetic to a fellow lawyer. At the council meeting, Mr. Hammerstein showed little or no insight into his own actions. On the contrary, he has mainly pointed to others.” The fact that Hammerstein himself had already quit the profession ‘doesn’t change that’.
Hammerstein had already unsubscribed from the tableau at the beginning of this year and his office has been cleared out. He has had an impressive career, during which he hung out with Gerard Spong for a while until they got into a fight. He received a royal decoration but was also detained for weeks on suspicion of money laundering for drug trafficker Johan V., better known as the Hakkelaar.