The court of Antwerp has sentenced two men from Amsterdam to prison for the attack on a restaurant in that city last year.
Scale
Ilyaas S. (19) was sentenced to four years in prison. Asher S. (27) faces 40 months in prison. It concerns an attack that was carried out on July 18, 2022 at the restaurant Pokebowl Place of the family of the famous kickboxer Jamal Ben Saddik. That writes the Gazet van Antwerp on Wednesday afternoon.
Cobra
The two men traveled to Antwerp at night. There S. placed fireworks of the Cobra type on the facade of the restaurant. After the bomb exploded, a fire started in the diner. It was already the third time that the restaurant was attacked.
Jamal Ben Saddik and his brothers are involved in multiple drug cases, the newspaper said. The series of attacks carried out against the Ben Saddik family in the summer of 2022 is said to be related to a conflict in the drug environment. Within six weeks there were twelve attacks on properties linked to the family, writes reporter Joris van der Aa.
Confessions
Ilyaas S. could be arrested immediately after the attack. He called driver Aser S., who had to pick him up again. Chat conversations about the attack were found in his mobile phone. Ilyaas S. first invoked his right to remain silent, but made confessions during the court session. He said that he had been approached in Amsterdam for a ‘job’ in Antwerp, with which he could earn 1,000 euros. The man, who was addicted to laughing gas and spent most of his time on the street, was open to that.
Aser S. denied that Ilyaas S. had been in his car with the fireworks and stated that he was not aware of the imminent attack. He thought they were going to use nitrous oxide and he felt misled by Ilyaas S.
The court found Asher S.’s explanation implausible. The guilt of both defendants was declared proven, according to the Antwerp Gazet.
