Demand 20 years for shooting a man in Amsterdam-West

On Wednesday, the Public Prosecution Service in Amsterdam demanded a 20-year prison sentence against a 27-year-old man suspected of shooting 29-year-old Roudile Paquay. The victim had been called to mediate a conflict between two ex-lovers on February 14 last year. At the Van Limburg Stirumplein in Amsterdam-West, the situation degenerated into a shooting. Paquay died at the scene. A 35-year-old friend of his was hit in the leg, another friend was unharmed.

Suspect Atalja B. was arrested in Suriname in August last year and transferred to the Netherlands. A few weeks ago, during an interrogation before the investigating judge, he stated that he had been the shooter. A witness on the spot had recognized B. by his appearance and his coat. B.’s girlfriend at the time stated that she dropped him off on the Van Limburg Stirumplein on the night in question. According to the woman, B. later told her that there had been an argument.

B. would have fired at least three times. He has said that he always carried the weapon with him, which means that it has not been established that there was a preconceived plan. Murder cannot be proven, according to the Public Prosecution Service. B. has stated that he shot to defend himself, but according to the judiciary, this is not the case. According to all witnesses, the shooting came as a total surprise, no one has estimated the situation as threatening, according to the Public Prosecution Service.

“The shot victim had nothing to do with the underlying conflict,” said the public prosecutor in substantiating his sentence. “He came along because he was verbally and communicatively strong and died completely innocent. A beautiful life with a bright future ahead of him was pointlessly ended with one shot.”