The 24-year-old suspect who was arrested on Thursday evening on suspicion of the murder of three men in the Rotterdam district of IJsselmonde, was previously checked by the police following a tip. He was not arrested yet. The Rotterdam security triangle announced this on Friday in a press conference about the events of the past two weeks. The suspect will be brought before the judge on Monday.
During the arrest, which happened on Thursday evening at 7 p.m. in a store in IJselmonde, the police checked his identity details and took a photo. Rotterdam police chief Fred Westerbeke said in the press conference that, based on the photos that the police had of the suspect at the time of checking, there was too little similarity to make an arrest. In that phase of the investigation, “a lot of people” were stopped on the street, says Westerbeke.
Initially there was uncertainty about the suspect’s skin color. After an initial analysis of photos, the police announced that the suspect had a “light tan” skin color. Later, after examining new photos, it was determined that he has a dark complexion.
Second suspect ‘involved’
The 24-year-old suspect was arrested late on Thursday evening in a house on Emelissedijk, a street in the IJsselmonde district of Rotterdam. He is from Curaçao and grew up in the Netherlands. He previously came into contact with the law for minor crimes, such as a number of shoplifting incidents and the stealing of a scooter.
The arrest was made after the police’s criminal intelligence unit passed on a tip. It is still unclear whether the amount of 30,000 euros announced yesterday by the Public Prosecution Service for the golden tip in this case will also be paid out.
The arrest took place in the house of an acquaintance of the suspect. That knowledge has not been retained because there is as yet no evidence that he knew anything about the suspect’s actions. During the arrest, a bag containing the firearm, which was possibly used in the three shootings, was thrown down. It is unknown who threw the bag.
Last Monday, another man, a 20-year-old, was arrested on suspicion of involvement in the shootings. His pre-trial detention was extended by fourteen days on Thursday. He is said to have been “involved”, but the extent of his role remains to be seen. The police are no longer looking for anyone.
‘Don’t go out alone’
In two weeks, the suspect is said to have killed three victims: a 63-year-old man, a 58-year-old man and an 81-year-old man. The shootings took place on December 21 and 28, and on January 2. The last shooting incident was in broad daylight, at 10 am. All three men later died from their injuries.
Prior to Thursday evening’s arrest, the police had warned to “be extra careful” in the IJsselmonde area – “don’t go outside alone.” wrote a spokesperson at X. With the arrest, that advice lapsed.
Police Commissioner Westerbeke said today that he is “extremely certain” that the suspect now arrested is also the serial killer. “You can count on that,” said the police chief. The conclusion is based on “an aggregate” of evidence that the police have collected.
The police have already briefly interviewed the suspect, but say they have no idea yet what the perpetrator’s motive was for shooting three random people. Two victims were shot in the head. “The perpetrator acted incredibly brutally,” said chief prosecutor Hugo Hillenaar.