Eleven men jailed for preparing to torture gang rivals in a sea container

Eleven men have been jailed for between one and nine years for their role in the Dutch torture chamber case, which made headlines round the world when the gang was rounded up in 2020.

The case centred on seven sound-proofed containers in a warehouse in Brabant which had been kitted out as cells and, in one case, as a torture chamber, complete with dentist’s chair and restraining straps.

Police discovered the containers in Wouwse Plantage after intercepting encrypted messages between gang members. They also seized a chest, freezer, garden clippers and gas burners which could have been used to torture the victims.

Ringleader Roger P, nicknamed Piet Costa, was jailed for 33 months, which comes on top of the 15 year sentence he was given last month for smuggling cocaine on a massive scale.

Judges at the high security court in Amsterdam said the gang was guilty of a variety of crimes, including preparing to kidnap and torture rival gang members and their families.

The sea containers plus chat messages provided sufficient evidence to convict the gang, the court said. One message read out in court said: ‘we must have enough belts and tie wraps to tie them up’. Another said: ‘we need pliers for fingers and toes’.

P’s right hand man was jailed for eight years. He was found guilty of collecting information about the potential victims, among other charges. Police said the planned abductions had been prepared with great care, with ‘an observation team and a large number of guns, police uniforms, mini buses, stop signs and bullet-proof vests’.

The gang had argued that the containers had been kitted out to scare victims or to use for growing marijuana.