A brawl broke out at the afterparty of Lichtjesavond in Alkmaar on Saturday. Two people were injured and the possible perpetrators tried to escape the police with a boat. With the help of a bystander, an officer on the water still manages to arrest a suspect (44).
Brawl Alkmaar – NH News
The police start the spectacular chase in a boat of a bystander. The festive evening at the Turfmarkt was initially quiet, until suddenly, around midnight, the flames broke out and several people on the shore started fighting with each other.
A man and woman are injured in that fight. When alerted police address the possible perpetrators, they do not respond. They then boarded a boat and sailed away through the water in the direction of the Zeglis.
A bystander then offers to help the officers. “Borrow one his boat and together with the owner they went after the fleeing suspects,” a police spokesman said today. Meanwhile, police cars are also looking for them via the mainland.
In the end, the officer on the boat manages to urge the suspects to stop at the Kraspolder bridge, about a mile away.
When mooring ashore, the police reinforcements also arrive. After a 44-year-old man from Alkmaar resists the police again on the side, he is arrested on suspicion of assault.
There is another 44-year-old man in the ‘escape boat’. His role in the brawl is currently under investigation. The third occupant is currently seen as a witness.
“It seemed like it started out of nowhere. They were really hitting each other,” says a woman who witnessed the brawl on the shore in the harbor near the Turfmarkt.
Several times the fighting people were separated by others. “There was no security and police so it started again two more times after that.”
“We understand that no one expects to borrow their boat for a water chase”
Another man present also saw a chair fly. “They threw it on a couple. It all went off the rails. They got away from God.” A woman received a ‘full punch’ in the face and sat on the floor for a while. Some bystanders found drops of blood on their clothing.
Because it is very busy and the quay is narrow, panic arose. “We had nowhere to go, that made it intense for everyone,” said the female witness. And after one, she suddenly stopped seeing the fighting men. “Then we said to each other: will they be on a boat?”
‘Fantastic help’
The police say today that they are grateful that someone wanted to lend his boat for the search. “It’s fantastic that someone wanted to help the police. We understand that people are there for a party and no one expects to borrow their boat for a water chase. Without that help, the arrest would be much more difficult.”
A woman (28) from the municipality of Koggenland and an Alkmaarder (32) have filed a report. The police will investigate the case and the Public Prosecution Service will then decide later on whether to prosecute the suspect(s).