Suspect admits in court he came to kill Haarlem activist
Mehrez A., 40, told the Noord-Holland court at Schiphol that he came to the Netherlands to kill an Iranian activist living in Haarlem, as the trial of six suspects opened.
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Illustrative photo: Torsade de Pointes / CC0
"Yes," Mehrez A., 40, answered on Friday when the judge asked whether he had come to the Netherlands to carry out a contract killing. He is one of six suspects over the failed attempt on 6 June 2024 on Siamak Tadayon Tahmasbi, an Iranian activist and writer who lives in Haarlem. The Noord-Holland district court opened the full trial in the high-security courtroom at Schiphol.
"I didn't know the man, I didn't even know his name," he said. "For me it was a matter of money: I needed money to get out of Europe, because Europol and Interpol were looking for me."
Tahmasbi raised the alarm that night after seeing two men outside his home. Police arrived quickly and arrested A. and co-suspect Gabriel O. (29). Tahmasbi criticises the Iranian regime, and the intelligence service AIVD considers it likely that the order came from there. The background to the plot is not part of the criminal case against the perpetrators. Tahmasbi attended the hearing with two bodyguards and his lawyer.
A. was the only suspect willing to answer questions. O. and Edwin V. (42), both Colombian, invoked their right to remain silent.
The AIVD has said that one of the two men arrested that night is also suspected of the failed attempt on Alejo Vidal-Quadras, a Spanish former politician and critic of Iran. A. is suspected of involvement in that attack in Madrid in November 2023, and serious cases against him are also pending in France, Italy and Spain.
The court will hear the cases against two suspects accused of complicity next week. Sami Bekal Bounouare (29), who is on the run, will be tried in his absence; he is said to have directed A. and O. The Public Prosecution Service (OM) will present its sentencing demands on 12 November, and the court is due to give its verdict on 21 December.
What happens next
- Next week: the court will hear the cases against the two remaining suspects, a 23-year-old man and a 29-year-old woman.
- 12 November: the Public Prosecution Service (Openbaar Ministerie) will present its sentencing demands.
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