Dutch Reporter Peter R. De Vries Shot In Amsterdam
By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News reporting from Amsterdam, the Netherlands
(Worthy News) – Dutch crime reporter Peter R. de Vries was shot and injured in Amsterdam after participating in a television show, authorities confirmed Tuesday.
De Vries was rushed to hospital with serious injuries, according to several sources. Police in the Dutch capital launched a manhunt to find the shooter and detained three people, Worthy News learned.
Police said De Vries, 64, was shot five times in downtown Amsterdam on Tuesday after leaving a TV studio where he recorded a television appearance. De Vries was shot in the head during the incident, Dutch broadcaster RTL reported.
De Vries was taken to a hospital in “serious condition,” police said.
In a reaction, Prime Minister Mark Rutte said: “We pray that he will survive.” He stressed that the shooting of De Vries was “an attack on the free press.”
BLACK DAY
Dutch Justice minister Ferd Grapperhaus called the shooting a “black day.” He warned: “It damages our society. I knew De Vries.”
Separately Amsterdam Mayor Femke Halsema said De Vries was “fighting for his life.” She stressed that “He is a hero who defends people seeking justice. This was a brutal coward act.”
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) seemed to agree. “Dutch authorities should swiftly and thoroughly investigate the shooting of crime reporter Peter R. de Vries and determine if he was targeted for his work, the CPJ said. The group told Worthy News that it wanted to “ensure that the attacker and the masterminds of the attack face justice,” said CPJ.
Tom Gibson, CPJ’s European Union representative, told Worthy News that journalists in the EU “must be able to investigate crime and corruption without fearing for their safety.”
De Vries has covered numerous high-profile criminal investigations.
DRUGS SMUGGLE
He previously received death threats in 2019 over his coverage of the killing of a teenager in Rotterdam, well-informed sources said.
At the time of the attack, he was reportedly working as an advisor to the prosecution’s key witness in the trial of an alleged drug kingpin.
De Vries was put on a “criminal underworld hit list,” reports said.
Around the site of the attack, people were burning candles. Some residents cried, saying De Vries was targeted for his work.
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