During an appeal hearing, Kamil E. said he refused the task, but under threats to his life was forced to drive the getaway car for the actual killer, Delano G., Polish Radio reported, citing Dutch newspaper de Volkskrant via the Polish state news agency PAP.
Kamil E. also acknowledged that he had followed de Vries in Amsterdam and provided the gang with photos of the journalist leaving the RTL Boulevard TV studio.
He previously denied being in the city or knowing the victim, but explained that he had lied during the original trial out of fear for his life and his family.
“They told me I knew too much. I was afraid for my life,” he said in a secure courtroom near Schiphol Airport.
The accused emphasised that he was forced to participate and argued that his 28-year prison sentence was too severe for his role as the driver. The appeal hearing is revisiting the cases of nine defendants, with prosecutors seeking life sentences for three, including Kamil E. and Delano G.
The trial is expected to continue for several weeks, with a verdict scheduled by the end of the year.
Peter Rudolf de Vries, one of the Netherlands’ most prominent investigative journalists, died on 6 July 2021, nine days after the attack. He was known for uncovering the 1983 kidnapping of the Heineken brewery boss and later for supporting a crown witness in the trial of crime boss Ridouan Taghi.
His children, Roy and Kelly de Vries, now run a foundation in his name, assisting crime victims and advocating for justice in unsolved cases.
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Source: PR24/PAP/volkskrant.nl/X/@PRDVFoundation