Justice minister warns of “unprecedented” violence after attack

Justice minister David van Weel has called the violence in the Gelderland village of Overasselt “unprecedented” for the Netherlands, after dozens of armed men shot a man dead and opened fire on police in the early hours of Tuesday.

Dozens of young men moving through a village armed and immediately shooting at police was, he said, something the country had never seen before. Van Weel said it was probably international gangs settling scores – “drug cartels, mafia” that operate across borders.

Both Het Parool and De Telegraaf have cited sources reporting that the attack grew out of a dispute over a large shipment of cocaine tied to the organisation of Jos “Bolle Jos” Leijdekkers, the fugitive regarded as the Netherlands’ most wanted drug lord.

According to Het Parool, figures in the criminal world believe the group came to recover part of a missing cocaine shipment, which would explain the number of men involved.

Residents of Overasselt, who had been told to stay indoors during a day-long manhunt, were allowed back out on Tuesday evening. Police said there was no sign that any suspects were still in or around the village, though extra patrols were deployed overnight and the investigation is ongoing.

Officers confirmed that a 51-year-old man from nearby Wijchen was shot dead – reportedly a security guard hired by the household that was targeted. Two police officers were seriously injured, one of them at one point in a life-threatening condition, though both are now out of danger.

A total of 34 people were arrested at various locations around the country, among them nationals of Belgium, France and Algeria as well as the Netherlands.

Van Weel would not say who was behind the attack, and the public prosecution department has declined to comment on any potential links while the investigation continues.

The targeted property has a long history of drug-related incidents. A drug lab was found there after a fire in 2019, and the same address was shot at with an AK-47 last year. One of its residents is appealing a four-year sentence for drug trafficking, according to broadcaster NOS.

Van Weel rejected the suggestion that the Netherlands had become a “narco-state”, where drugs gangs have free rein, but acknowledged that criminal networks such as those of Leijdekkers and the convicted crime boss Ridouan Taghi had taken root in the country and are benefiting from Dutch financial and logistical facilities.