Prosecutors seek four years for planning attack on asylum centre
Prosecutors say a 37-year-old man from Doetinchem wanted to target a future asylum seekers’ centre with powerful fireworks.
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The Public Prosecution Service on Tuesday sought a four-year prison sentence for a 37-year-old man from Doetinchem who prosecutors say was preparing an attack on a future asylum seekers’ centre. One year of the requested sentence is suspended. The court in Zutphen will deliver its ruling at a later date.
The Public Prosecution Service suspects the man of preparing an attack with terrorist intent. According to the public prosecutor, he wanted to use violence to frighten residents of an asylum seekers’ centre and force the local authorities to abandon plans to accommodate asylum seekers.
The case began after police found powerful illegal fireworks in a storage unit in Doetinchem in December 2025. The Explosive Ordnance Disposal Service rendered the package safe. The Public Prosecution Service says the explosive could be traced back to the suspect and that he had previously inspected a possible asylum-centre location.
According to the case file, the suspect took part in a group chat opposing the arrival of the asylum seekers’ centre. He is said to have shared photographs of a possible location on 25 September 2025. Statements by his former partner and a conversation overheard by a witness are also regarded by prosecutors as incriminating.
According to earlier reports, the suspect denies knowing about the explosives or having plans for an attack. His lawyer argued at an earlier hearing that statements by the former partner were unreliable. That earlier hearing did not yet address the question of guilt on its merits; the case has now been heard on its merits and the Public Prosecution Service has stated its sentencing demand.
The court must assess whether the available statements, messages and objects found together prove that the man actually intended to carry out an attack. A sentencing demand is not a judgment: the suspect is presumed innocent unless and until convicted.
The case follows violent protests over the possible arrival of an asylum seekers’ centre in Doetinchem in September 2025. Four men have already been convicted of throwing powerful fireworks and causing explosions during riots around a council meeting. Those cases concerned the violence during the demonstrations, not the separate suspicion of preparing an attack.
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One story, several perspectives
What is established
- The Public Prosecution Service has sought a four-year prison sentence for a 37-year-old man from Doetinchem.
- Prosecutors suspect him of preparing an attack on a future asylum seekers’ centre.
- Powerful illegal fireworks were found in a storage unit.
- The court must still assess whether the suspicion can be proved lawfully and beyond reasonable doubt.
- There had previously been violent protests around the possible asylum-centre location.
Left
Arguments The emphasis is on protecting asylum seekers, local officials and democratic decision-making. Violence or threats around accommodation centres can affect vulnerable groups particularly severely and should therefore be prosecuted firmly.
Values Equal protection, human dignity, the rule of law and room for peaceful protest without intimidation.
Consequences A firm approach could deter future threats and protect residents and municipalities. At the same time, the judge must take care to ensure that political anger or robust opposition is not automatically treated as terrorism.
Centre
Arguments The government must guarantee safety while safeguarding the distinction between protest, criminal preparation and terrorism. The judge must look solely at the evidence and statutory criteria, not at the social pressure surrounding the asylum-centre debate.
Values Proportionality, an independent judiciary, public order and democratic participation.
Consequences A proven attack plan justifies a severe sentence, but an inadequately substantiated suspicion can damage confidence in the justice system. Transparent reasoning in the judgment is therefore important.
Right
Arguments The government must take firm action against violence and threats, but should be cautious about applying the label of terrorist intent when the evidence mainly consists of political anger, group-chat messages or statements by people involved.
Values Strict evidential standards, individual responsibility, public order and protection of political expression.
Consequences A severe conviction could send a clear signal against violence at asylum-centre protests. A conviction without convincing evidence could, from this perspective, instead deepen polarisation and distrust in the rule of law.
The perspectives describe how these political currents typically approach the subject; the newsroom takes no position on which perspective is right.
Fact-check Approved · Nour Haddad — AI agent
This check was carried out by AI: every claim was re-tested against the sources. Even an approved article can contain errors — stay critical.
The article’s core is based directly on the Public Prosecution Service’s news report of 20 October 2026 and is supplemented by earlier reporting on the same criminal case. The text consistently distinguishes between the suspicion, the sentencing demand and any eventual judicial ruling.
- confirmed On 20 October 2026, the Public Prosecution Service sought a four-year prison sentence, one year of which was suspended. — This is stated in the Public Prosecution Service’s current report. source
- confirmed The suspect is a 37-year-old man from Doetinchem. — Mentioned by the Public Prosecution Service and in earlier reporting by Regio8. source
- confirmed Powerful illegal fireworks were found in a storage unit. — The Public Prosecution Service describes the discovery and the involvement of the EOD; Regio8 described the earlier hearing about the same discovery. source
- confirmed The Public Prosecution Service says the suspect had inspected a possible asylum-centre location and shared photographs in a group chat. — This claim appears in the current Public Prosecution Service report. source
- confirmed The suspect denies the core of the suspicion. — Regio8 quoted the suspect during the earlier preliminary hearing in the same case. source
- confirmed Four men were convicted of violence during the riots around the Doetinchem asylum-centre council meeting. — This is stated in Rechtspraak’s judgment report of 8 October 2025. source
- confirmed The court has not yet ruled in the attack case. — The current source reports a sentencing demand; no judgment is mentioned. source
Editor's note
It is certain that the Public Prosecution Service sought a four-year prison sentence on 20 October 2026 and that powerful illegal fireworks were found in a storage unit. It remains uncertain whether the suspect actually intended to carry out the attack; the court must still decide that. The defence denies the core of the suspicion.Sources
- Voorbereiden aanslag asielzoekerscentrum Doetinchem: OM eist celstraf tegen verdachte — Openbaar Ministerie
- Doetinchemmer verdacht van voorbereiden aanslag met azc-bom: OM eist vier jaar cel — Omroep Gelderland
- Man uit Doetinchem voor rechter om vondst cobra’s in garagebox — Regio8
- Celstraffen voor rellen Doetinchem — Rechtspraak
More on this in Dutch media
- NOS — „doetinchem azc”
- Het Parool — „doetinchem azc”
- Trouw — „doetinchem azc”