New key witness speaks out about underworld conflict surrounding Piet Costa
The Public Prosecution Service has presented a new key witness. This concerns 29-year-old Dominique K. He has opened up about murders and violent cases in Amsterdam and Rotterdam from 2020 and 2021. The violence is related to a feud in the underworld, in which an amount of 130 million euros was allegedly stolen . The key witness deal was concluded by the Public Prosecution Service in Amsterdam.

Yelle Tieleman, Chiel Timmermans 11-06-24, 11:58 Last update: 13:37
The key witness has, among other things, made incriminating statements about the murder of Rotterdam resident Ibrahim Azaim in May 2020. Azaim was the driver and accountant of Roger P., alias Piet Costa. During that period there were also plans for the murder of Hassan M., a confidant of Costa . He ultimately escapes a cold-blooded liquidation because he realizes that he is being followed. The key witness further made statements about the mistaken murder of Serdar Ay on October 20, 2020 in Amsterdam and the shooting of the Mad Fox nightclub in Amsterdam

Underworld conflict over 130 million euros
The murder of Azaim was probably part of an underworld conflict that erupted in 2020 between Roger P. and his former associate Ali D. The latter is said to have stolen an amount of approximately 130 million from the Rotterdam drug trafficker and invested in, among other things, real estate in Dubai .

At the time of Azaim's murder, P. had the controversial 'torture containers' built in the Brabant village of Wouwse Plantage. His group planned to kidnap, torture and kill their rivals, or even their relatives. 'This whole group must die. And family is allowed too. Even their dog," P. wrote in a chat, according to the Public Prosecution Service.

P. was considered one of the key figures in the global cocaine trade. He was sentenced to long prison terms for both large-scale drug trafficking and the construction of the torture containers.

Crown witness himself convicted
The key witness, 29-year-old Dominique K., was himself sentenced to fifteen years in prison for involvement in the murder of Ay in Amsterdam-Osdorp. The court considered it proven that K. installed the beacon under the victim's car. This allowed the eventual shooters to follow the Volkswagen Polo in question. Ay is said to have borrowed the car in question from the actual target of the liquidation.

In exchange for a reduced sentence, K. has now defected to the Public Prosecution Service. "He has provided the Public Prosecution Service with important information about both his own role and that of clients and executors," the Public Prosecution Service said. "The cases about which the key witness has stated are investigated by a criminal investigation team consisting of Amsterdam and Rotterdam detectives, led by a team of Rotterdam and Amsterdam public prosecutors, and are brought before the Amsterdam court."

The key witness is assisted by lawyer Onno de Jong. He does not want to comment substantively on the news at this time. In the past, De Jong assisted, among others, Nabil B. , who made statements about Ridouan Taghi as a key witness.

First key witness deal since devastating OVV report
This is the first deal with a key witness since the damning report last year by the Dutch Safety Board (OVV). It concluded that the government had seriously failed to protect relatives of key witness Nabil B. His brother Reduan, lawyer Derk Wiersum and confidant Peter R. de Vries were shot dead after it became known that B. had made statements against Ridouan Taghi and his organization . Information about possible threats was not always shared within the investigative services at the time.

Before the report came out, then Minister Ye?ilgöz (Justice and Security) announced that she wanted to expand the crown witness scheme. According to her, key witnesses are an essential tool in the fight against serious organized crime. She pointed to Italy as an example. It earned her the necessary criticism from politicians. Based on the OVV report, he found that security around key witnesses must first be in order before new deals are concluded.

Ye?ilgöz wants to expand the scheme so that less serious criminals can also be persuaded to become key witnesses, such as an accountant or port employee. In the deal, the entire sentence could be waived if someone testifies against leaders in the underworld. But only if the key witness faces a prison sentence of up to six years. Otherwise, the current maximum of 50 percent penalty reduction will continue to apply.

Key witness deals essential
The Amsterdam Public Prosecution Service responds that 'of course lessons have been learned' from the OVV report. "The Public Prosecution Service's principle is that we only make crown witness arrangements with crown witnesses when this can also be considered responsible in terms of security," a spokesperson said in writing. He further emphasizes: 'Some serious crimes can only be solved with inside knowledge. If we no longer want to use key witnesses, we must also accept that certain suspects of serious crimes cannot be convicted for their actions. That is unacceptable.'

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