Suspect in Amsterdam double killing says he is not criminally responsible

Efe Y., the 25-year-old suspect in the fatal shooting of two Syrian teenagers in Amsterdam, has told his lawyer he is not criminally responsible and expects compulsory psychiatric treatment rather than a prison sentence.

His lawyer relayed the statement at a third preliminary hearing on 25 September 2026, according to a related-article preview published by Reformatorisch Dagblad. The preview says the statement followed completion of a personality examination at the Pieter Baan Centrum. It does not provide the assessors’ conclusions or report a judicial ruling on criminal responsibility. [1]

The case concerns a shooting in Piet Wiedijkpark in western Amsterdam on 1 January 2026. Police were alerted at about 11.45pm. Two Syrian teenagers, aged 16 and 18, died at the scene, while a third boy escaped the gunfire. Police said they arrested a 25-year-old Amsterdam man on 20 January on suspicion of killing the pair. [5] [6]

The measure Y. reportedly expects is known in the Netherlands as TBS with compulsory hospitalisation: court-ordered treatment in a closed forensic psychiatric clinic. It is not equivalent to release. [4]

Under the Dutch framework, a finding that a defendant is not criminally responsible prevents punishment, but a court can still impose a measure such as psychiatric treatment where the legal conditions are met. Forensic assessors examine both any mental disorder and its relationship to the alleged offence; a diagnosis alone does not settle responsibility. No individual diagnosis or recommendation for Y. has been verified in the available material. [3]