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14 April 2005
AMSTERDAM — The man who was acquitted last week of plotting terrorist attacks in the Netherlands has been released from police custody again after he was briefly re-arrested on Wednesday, his lawyer Victor Koppe has said.
Samir A. will hear in about four weeks if he is to face assault and public disorder charges, which can result in a fine or a prison term of up to two years. The potential sentence is not sufficient to warrant his remand in custody.
The 18-year-old was detained and questioned by police on Wednesday in relation to the assault of a press photographer last week.
The incident — which was captured on camera by another photographer — occurred shortly after A. was cleared of the terror charges.
A pack of journalists was waiting for him outside Nieuwegein jail near Utrecht, where he had been held in custody since his arrest last July. A. was being escorted to a red van by friends and it was clear that neither he nor his friends were happy with the media attention.
A. was pictured punching freelance photographer Oscar Flos in the head. A. also allegedly punched another cameraman moments before knocking Flos to the ground.
Flos — who claims one of A.’s friends also gave him a kick or threw a punch — lodged a complaint with the police, leading to A.’s re-arrest.
The photographer has alleged that just before the assault, A. shouted: “Piss off, do you want to be punched in the head?” Flos replied: “Dat moet je doen”, translated as: “Go ahead”. The photographer then found himself lying on the ground.
A spokesperson for the public prosecutor’s office (OM) in Utrecht confirmed that A. had been detained for questioning about the incident. He made a statement to police, the contents of which have not been made public.
The OM hopes to decide within four weeks whether to charge A. with common assault and public disorder crimes.
A. had been accused of plotting terrorist attacks on the Parliament in The Hague, the headquarters of the security service AIVD in Leidschendam, Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport and the Borssele nuclear power plant.
[Copyright Expatica News + ANP 2005]
Subject: Dutch news