In the shadow of one of Europe's most brazen attacks on press freedom, Dutch prosecutors have reached further across borders — to Curaçao and Spain — to arrest two more suspects in the 2021 assassination of crime journalist Peter de Vries. His killing, carried out on a busy Amsterdam street while he was quietly supporting a witness against an alleged criminal empire, raised a question that investigators are still working to answer: who, at the top of that hierarchy, gave the order. The pursuit of that answer is a reminder that the murder of a journalist is never merely a single act, but a chai
Two more suspects arrested in Dutch crime reporter Peter de Vries murder
Crime reporter Peter de Vries, 64, was fatally shot at close range on an Amsterdam street on July 6, 2021, dying nine days later from his injuries.
He knew the danger. He went in anyway.
Mark
Why would a crime reporter become such a target that someone would order his death?
Mimi
Because he wasn't just reporting on crime—he was inside the system. He was advising a witness in a trial against one of the country's most powerful alleged gangsters. He had credibility, access, and he was helping dismantle something.
Mark
So the witness was already in danger?
Mimi
Deeply. The witness had already lost his brother and his lawyer to murder. De Vries knew this. He went in anyway.
Mark
And now investigators are looking for who ordered the hit. Why is that so hard to trace?
Mimi
Because organized crime works in layers. You have the person who pulls the trigger, the person who drives the getaway car, the person who arranges it all, and then the person who gives the order from above. Each layer insulates the one above it. Finding the person at the top—the one who actually decided de Vries had to die—that's what prosecutors are still working on.
Mark
These two new arrests in Curaçao and Spain—are they high up in that chain?
Mimi
We don't know yet. Prosecutors aren't saying what their roles were. They're just saying they're part of the investigation into who ordered the killing. They could be intermediaries, they could be closer to the decision-maker.
Mark
What happens next?
Mimi
The two men accused of actually carrying out the murder get verdicts on July 14. Life sentences are being sought. But the real reckoning—figuring out who decided de Vries had to die—that's still unfolding.
The Pulse
- A year after Peter de Vries was shot dead in broad daylight, prosecutors are still pulling at the threads of a conspiracy that stretches from Amsterdam to the Caribbean and southern Europe.
- Two Dutch nationals — a 27-year-old detained in Curaçao and a 26-year-old held in Spain — now face extradition, arriving just days after a Polish man was arrested as the suspected organizer of the hit.
- The men de Vries was helping to protect had already watched a brother and a lawyer be murdered; he pressed on anyway, and became the next target.
- On July 14, judges will deliver verdicts for the alleged gunman and getaway driver, with prosecutors demanding life sentences — but the deeper question of who issued the order remains unresolved.
- The parallel trial of alleged crime boss Ridouan Taghi, whose organization prosecutors call an 'oiled killing machine,' continues on a separate track, with no formal charge linking him to de Vries' death — yet.
In the shadow of one of Europe's most brazen attacks on press freedom, Dutch prosecutors have reached further across borders — to Curaçao and Spain — to arrest two more suspects in the 2021 assassination of crime journalist Peter de Vries. His killing, carried out on a busy Amsterdam street while he was quietly supporting a witness against an alleged criminal empire, raised a question that investigators are still working to answer: who, at the top of that hierarchy, gave the order. The pursuit of that answer is a reminder that the murder of a journalist is never merely a single act, but a chain of decisions — and that chains, given time, can be traced.
Dutch prosecutors announced the arrest of two more suspects in the murder of crime journalist Peter de Vries — a 27-year-old detained in Curaçao and a 26-year-old held in Spain, both Dutch nationals set to be extradited for questioning. The announcement came a day after a 27-year-old Polish man was arrested as the suspected organizer of the killing itself, marking a significant advance in the effort to trace the chain of command behind the assassination.
De Vries, 64, had spent decades building a reputation as one of the Netherlands' most tenacious investigative journalists. When he was shot at close range on a busy Amsterdam street on July 6, 2021, he was not simply covering a story — he was actively advising a key witness in the trial of Ridouan Taghi, a man prosecutors describe as the head of a ruthless criminal network. That witness had already lost his brother and his lawyer to murder. De Vries, knowing the risks, continued his work regardless. He died nine days after the shooting.
Two men — the alleged gunman and getaway driver — have already stood trial in Amsterdam, with verdicts expected July 14 and prosecutors seeking life sentences for both. But the investigation has always pointed toward a larger question: who ordered the killing. The newly arrested suspects are believed to sit somewhere in that chain of command, though prosecutors have not yet disclosed their precise roles.
Separately, the trial of Taghi himself continues, with prosecutors last month urging judges to convict him of multiple murders and sentence him to life imprisonment. He has not been formally charged in connection with de Vries' death — but the circumstances of the killing, and the investigation still actively pursuing its architects, leave that question far from closed.
The investigation into who ordered the killing of Peter de Vries took another step forward when Dutch prosecutors announced the arrest of two more suspects overseas. A 27-year-old man was detained in Curaçao and a 26-year-old was held in Spain, both Dutch nationals who will be extradited to face questioning in the Netherlands. The announcement came just a day after authorities had arrested a 27-year-old Polish man suspected of organizing the hit itself—the person prosecutors believe actually arranged for the murder to happen.
De Vries, a 64-year-old crime journalist who had built his reputation investigating cold cases and exposing criminal networks, was shot at close range on a busy Amsterdam street on July 6, 2021. He died nine days later from his injuries. The shooting sent shockwaves through the Dutch media and law enforcement communities, not least because de Vries had been far more than a reporter—he was an active participant in one of the country's most significant organized crime investigations, serving as an adviser and confidant to a key witness in the trial of Ridouan Taghi, an alleged gangland leader prosecutors have described as running an "oiled killing machine."
The stakes of that trial help explain why de Vries became a target. The witness he was advising had already lost his brother and his lawyer to murder. Both men were killed, presumably to silence testimony or intimidate those close to the witness. De Vries, despite knowing the danger, continued his work—advising, supporting, and lending his credibility to a witness whose testimony could help dismantle a major criminal organization.
The investigation into de Vries' own murder has now moved through several layers. Two men—the alleged gunman and the getaway driver—have already stood trial in Amsterdam on murder charges. Judges are scheduled to deliver verdicts on July 14, with prosecutors having requested life sentences for both. But the real question that has driven investigators forward is who gave the order. That's where the newly arrested suspects come in. Prosecutors have not yet disclosed their specific roles or identities, only that they are being investigated as part of the chain of command that led to the killing.
Meanwhile, the larger trial involving Taghi himself continues on a separate track. Prosecutors last month urged judges to convict him of multiple murders and sentence him to life imprisonment, with verdicts expected next year. Notably, Taghi has not been charged in connection with de Vries' death, though the timing and circumstances of the killing—coming as it did while de Vries was actively supporting a witness against him—have led many to suspect a connection. The investigation into whether that connection exists, and who in the criminal hierarchy made the decision to eliminate the journalist, remains very much active.
Notable Quotes
Prosecutors described the alleged crime organization as an 'oiled killing machine'— Dutch prosecutors
Want the full story?
Read the original at BreakingNews.ie ↗
Crime & Justice