Seven Rotterdam police officers to face trial over arrest death

Seven police officers will go on trial in January next year over the death of a 32-year-old man who was held in a “prone position” on the ground for a long time after being tasered during an arrest in Rotterdam in 2023, the public prosecution department (OM) said on Thursday.

Two officers chased the man on June 9 that year, first in a police van and then on foot, after reports that he had crashed his bicycle into a car and then cycled on.

When he ignored their instructions, one officer used a taser, but it did not incapacitate him or stop him from further resisting. More officers arrived and several of them pinned him down. Soon after he became unwell and was given CPR but died in hospital.

In February 2024 the OM said it would prosecute eight officers after an investigation by the Rijksrecherche, which investigates the police. A pathologist concluded the man’s death could have been caused by the way he was restrained.

The officers are accused of breaching the rules on the use of force with fatal consequences, which has been a criminal offence in its own right since July 2022.

The OM said on Thursday it had dropped a case against an eighth officer, as he was still in training and was following instructions.

The case will be heard on January 19 and from February 15 to 18 by the Blauwe Kamer, a special court in Utrecht that handles cases against police officers. The court will rule on all seven cases at the same time.

In September another Rotterdam man, Alfredo Goeloe (51), died during an arrest after collapsing while officers held him on the ground. That incident led to protests in the city. The Rijksrecherche is investigating his death as well.