Police arrest alleged youth centre shooter

Amsterdam police have arrested a 25 year old man suspected of being involved in a fatal shooting at a youth centre in Wittenburg in January this year, the Parool reports.

It is thought that the man nicknamed ‘Millie’ was one of two masked men armed with automatic weapons who entered the youth centre in the Grote Wittenburgerstraat and started shooting, killing 17 year-old Bouchikhi. He worked at the youth centre as a trainee.

Another trainee, a 20 year-old woman, was shot in the leg. The gunmen also shot 19 year-old Gianni L., who was involved in another shooting close to the youth centre last year and may have been the real target. At the time of the shooting, the youth centre was hosting a children’s cookery class and several other activities.

According to paper, the man, who has been involved in numerous violent crimes, was known to be ‘notoriously unpredictable’ and particularly inept at handing a gun, making him unpopular in criminal circles.

This resulted in a number of tip-offs, the paper writes. Police also found the man’s DNA at the scene.

The news of the arrest comes in the wake of a number of measures taken by the youth centre to prevent teens being groomed for criminal activity, such as introducing a pass system and separating activities for older children from those for younger children.