Mohamed el Aissaoui, a suspect in the Marengo trial, reiterated his fervent wish on Tuesday to set up a foundation to keep young people out of crime. His lawyer Marcel Heuvelmans applied to the Amsterdam court for a suspension of his detention.
El Aissaoui is a special suspect. Besides crown witness Nabil B., he is the only one who wanted to explain about the main suspect Ridouan T.
He also says that he warned several (intended) victims of T. that their lives were in danger. Among them was lawyer Derk Wiersum. El Aissaoui is said to have dropped his name with the secret service of the police, the Criminal Intelligence Team (TCI).
At the end of last year it became clear that El Aissaoui had made statements in June 2021 about T. and how he became involved in the criminal organization against his will. In order not to bump into T., he played along with the game. But he claims to have never actively contributed to a liquidation.
The Marengo liquidation process revolves around six murders and several attempts to do so. According to the Public Prosecution Service (OM), El Aissaoui was involved in the murder of Ranko Scekic in June 2016.
According to the judiciary, it is clear from encrypted messages attributed to El Aissaoui that he also actively contributes to criminal matters. That was just play, according to the suspect.
With full name and photo in the newspaper
To reinforce his good intentions, El Aissaoui gave an interview in May The Parool† In it, his full name was mentioned, including a photo.
With this he wants to show that he has said goodbye to crime, he told the court on Tuesday. With the foundation called Ex-Marengo, he wants to prevent young people from ending up in crime.
“I know that with my experience I can help the young people,” said El Aissaoui in a letter he read on Tuesday. The man also says he is training as a youth coach.
Enthusiasm disappeared after conversation with OM
It is not clear whether it ever will. According to lawyer Heuvelmans, there was initially a very enthusiastic response from a government agency. But after a conversation with the Public Prosecution Service, this suddenly changed, he said.
According to the Public Prosecution Service, this is much more nuanced. It would have been made clear to El Aissaoui’s family that many conditions still had to be met before authorities can provide support. The man himself says he is determined to succeed in his goal.
The court will decide on the release request at a later date. On June 8, the Public Prosecution Service will start the indictment.