Vandalism has again been caused at the ING office on Bijlmerdreef in Amsterdam-Zuidoost. Dozens of windows have been destroyed this month.
Some of the damage and cracks are reminiscent of bullet holes, but a bank spokesperson emphasizes that there was no shelling. The damage was probably caused with a claw hammer.
The text continues below the photos.
The ING spokesperson says that the destruction was already caused at the beginning of May. The office building was also defaced at the time. That is why some red paint can still be seen at the entrance. He speaks of significant damage.
In addition to this office, several other bank properties in the city have also been targeted both this year and last year. Climate activists and pro-Palestinian activists previously demanded those actions.
“We do not provide any information about the exact number of incidents or the extent of the damage,” says the bank’s spokesperson. “In such cases we always report it to the police and we will make every effort to recover damages from the perpetrators.”
Police
For privacy reasons, a police spokesperson cannot say how often the bank has reported the destruction of the building on Bijlmerdreef. She also says that this office has been vandalized or defaced several times. The police are still investigating who was responsible. Two arrests were made on May 7, but it could not be proven that they had actually defaced the building.
The ING spokesperson did not want to say whether measures have been taken against new incidents, ‘to prevent malicious parties from taking advantage of this’. “We think these destructions are misplaced. They appear to be motivated by incomplete or incorrect information and do not contribute to a constructive conversation.”
