Justice on Tuesday demanded six years in prison for a 35-year-old man who shot another man in a crowded cafe in The Hague. It was the violent outcome of an argument over a reserved table. The victim celebrated his birthday that evening.
Pop
On August 6, 2023, visitors to the Brazuka Bar in the center of The Hague were startled by a loud bang. Shots have been fired in the small, crowded café and a man is bleeding on the dance floor with a gunshot wound in his leg. The victim is a 36-year-old man from The Hague. The bullet explodes, shattering his tibia.
The victim is celebrating his birthday that evening in the Hague bar on Herenstraat. If at some point an argument arises with another group about a table reserved for the party, things start to escalate. Witnesses later told the police that the argument over the table turned into a scuffle and that the suspect then grabbed a firearm and shot.
Arrest
After investigating the identity of the shooter, the police arrested the now 35-year-old suspect JL 10 days after the event. CCTV footage shows him entering the bar and leaving the bar 20 seconds after the shooting and walking to the parking garage.
Research on his telephone also shows that he is familiar with the possession of firearms. For example, several images of firearms are found on his phone. Finally, there are several witnesses who state that the suspect is the person who shot.
Short distance
According to the Public Prosecution Service (OM), this was an attempted manslaughter: ‘During a night out, the suspect settled a conflict with gun violence among partying people in a crowded bar. He shot the victim from close range and hit him in the leg, causing him to live with a leg fixed with steel plates,” said the public prosecutor.
Aggravating punishment
The officer also blames the suspect for shooting in a crowded café, where it was also difficult for bystanders to flee: ‘I cannot prove the attempted manslaughter against this group. I do take this into account as an aggravating circumstance. With his actions, the suspect has contributed to their feelings of fear, and to society as a whole.’ She demanded a prison sentence of six years.
Telephone
Suspect JL denied to the judge yesterday that he shot in Brazuka, writes the Algemeen Dagblad: ‘I sat on a stool at the bar the whole time and was busy with my phone.’ He didn’t even hear the shot, he said.
According to his lawyer, the police conducted an incomplete investigation, including only friends of the victim. ‘Independent witnesses have not been interviewed.’ No one would have seen the suspect shoot either.
The court will make its ruling in two weeks.
