The justice department has laid claim on almost €20m from crime boss Willem Holleeder whose appeal against a nine year prison sentence for blackmail is due to start next month, reported current affairs tv programme Nova on Monday night.

The claim on the money was made in January shortly after Holleeder was found guilty by a court in Harlem and is an estimate of how much he earned from blackmailing a number of businessmen.
His lawyer Jan-Hein Kuijpers confirmed the move and the amount involved on Nova.
The seizure of the €20m is subject to the outcome of Holleeder’s appeal and a separate judicial process.