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7 of the Most Famous Dutch Gangsters

The Netherlands is frequently portrayed as a small, rich, and forward-thinking country. However, the Netherlands has a dark underbelly beyond the lovely bikes, windmills, and tulips – the country is home to some serious and disturbed criminals.

Murderers, gangsters, and even war criminals are among the most well-known Dutch criminals. It’s time to sharpen your magnifying glass and investigate some of the most renowned criminals in Dutch history!

1. Joran van der Sloot

Joran van der Sloot Aruba by Aruba Police Force from

Joran van der Sloot appeared to be a regular guy on the surface. He was born in Arnhem and relocated to Aruba with his family in 1990, where he excelled in school and was a top athlete for his football team. It’s time to sharpen your magnifying glass and investigate some of the most renowned criminals in Dutch history!

The facade, however, was swiftly shattered. Van der Sloot was designated a key suspect in the disappearance of an American girl named Natalee Holloway in Aruba when she was just 18 years old. Van der Sloot was the last person to see Natalee, but the problem was that her body was never found, therefore Van der Sloot was never charged.

That’s only one example, and it’s possible Van der Sloot was simply in the wrong location at the wrong moment. Five years later, on the same day that Natalee vanished, Stephany Flores Ramrez, 21, was found beaten to death in a Lima hotel room. What was the name of the room beneath? Joran van der Sloot, to be precise.

Justice was served in a timely manner. Following Van der Sloot’s arrest, a Peruvian judge sentenced the 25-year-old to 28 years in prison. He is imprisoned in a Peruvian jail to this day.

2. Willem Holleede

Willem Holleeder is a well-known crook and mobster in Amsterdam. De Neus (The Nose) was his moniker due to his enormous — well, you get the idea.

Holleeder is accused with five killings, one of which was committed by his own brother-in-law and accomplice Cor van Hout. Echt? His most well-known crime, and one of the most well-known in Dutch history, was the kidnapping of Freddy Heineken, Heineken’s CEO, and his chauffeur in 1983.

Holleeder requested a payment for the men’s release, but in an unexpected turn of events, he and his men took the money and fled without releasing their captives. Fortunately, the authorities were able to liberate the two captives.

Holleeder was sentenced to 11 years in jail for kidnapping in 1983. He was sentenced to life in prison in 2019 after being convicted of five murders and one count of manslaughter.

3. Thijs H

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The vast majority of persons who knew Thijs H. thought of him as a lovely guy. He was described as a gentle, nice individual. However, the Netherlands was stunned in May 2019 when the then 27-year-old went on a murder spree in Den Haag and Limburg, killing three dog walkers.

The brutalized body of a 56-year-old woman who had been walking her dog was discovered in the Scheveningen Bosjes on May 5, 2019.

Two more bodies were recovered two days later, this time all the way in Limburg. What’s more, guess what? At the time of the attack, both victims were out walking their dogs. What a bizarre turn of events! During the attack, the dogs were also suspected to have been hurt.

H. was arrested after detectives in Limburg linked the offenses to the ones in Den Haag. A judge handed out the sentence on July 31, 2020: 18 years in prison with mandatory TBS treatment.

4. Frans van Anraat

This case makes us wonder if anyone can be trusted completely. Can you imagine finding out that one of your coworkers is a war criminal?

That is precisely what occurred with Frans van Anraat. Before being convicted of war crimes, he was a successful Dutch businessman. In the 1980s, Van Anraat founded his own corporation, which provided Saddam Hussein’s regime with enormous quantities of mustard and nerve gas. In 1987, the gases were used against civilians in Iran and Iraq, as well as in the military offensive on the Kurds in 1988, which resulted in the deaths of 5,000 people. Talk about nefarious!

In 1989, the United States asked that he be arrested in Italy, but he was released pending his trial and escaped to Iraq. He became an Iraqi citizen and resided for 14 years there.

However, on December 6, 2004, he was caught by Dutch authorities and sentenced to 17 years in prison for war crimes and genocide. He must also pay €25,000 each to 16 victims of gas attacks in Iraq and Iran, according to the Court of Appeal in The Hague.

5. Volkert van der Graaf

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Volkert van der Graaf is a man who is very serious about environmental issues and animal welfare. Furthermore, he had a personal grudge towards Dutch politician Pim Fortuyn, who held divisive views on Islam, immigration, and multiculturalism.

Van der Graaf decided he’d had enough of the divisive politician on May 6, 2002. He grabbed a revolver and drove to Hilversum’s radio station, where Fortuyn was giving an interview. Van der Graaf shot the politician in the head point-blank as he exited the station into the parking lot and fled. Van der Graaf’s driver quickly apprehended him and kept him until the cops arrived.

Van der Graaf went through a criminal trial and the judge laid down a sentence of 18 years imprisonment. However, he was released in 2014 on parole, after having served just 12 years in jail

6. Ridouan Taghi

Ridouan Taghi is the Dutch-Moroccan equivalent of Walter White. He is accused of ordering at least 10 murders in the name of organized crime, and he is the purported leader of one of the world’s greatest narcotics rings. He was the most wanted criminal in the Netherlands until his arrest in 2019.

Taghi is suspected of organising the murder of lawyer Derk Wiersum, as well as the brother of a key witness in a trial against Taghi. He is also alleged to have ordered the recent murder of Dutch journalist Peter R. de Vries. Both Wiersum and De Vries were shot in the street in broad daylight.

7. Michael Panhuis

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This case may irritate you and cause you to doubt the criminal justice system. Michael Panhuis had a long criminal record prior to 2017. He was convicted of raping two young girls in 2012 and was receiving therapy at an in-patient psychiatric clinic for the offence. On September 29, 2017, he was given permission to leave the grounds, and it was then that he perpetrated his most heinous atrocity.

Anne Faber, a 25-year-old student, was out for a bike ride in Soest, near Utrecht, when Panhuis abducted her. He then battered, raped, and murdered the girl before dumping her body in the woods two weeks later. Panhuis was the perpetrator, according to DNA evidence found on Faber’s jacket. For assault, rape, and kidnapping, Panhuis was sentenced to 28 years in jail with mandatory TBS treatment.

That concludes our list of the seven most notable criminals from the Netherlands! Who’d have guessed that this tiny country was home to so many crazies? We’re just relieved that the vast majority of these criminals are paying, or have paid, the price for their wrongdoings.