On September 27, 2018, in a quaint Dutch town, a security camera recorded the leisurely approach of six men toward a brick bungalow nestled within one of the country’s holiday parks. These parks are known for providing affordable accommodations to tourists, offering amenities such as campsites, RV parking, and budget-friendly bungalow rentals. Additionally, they often feature recreational activities like swimming, golf, and bowling, making them a convenient choice for families on vacation. However, on this particular September day, the six men captured on camera were not vacationing families. Their body language clearly indicated that their sole objective was to gain entry to the holiday bungalow.
Upon reaching the front door of the bungalow, the group’s apparent leader, distinguished by his dark brown hair and full beard, produced a key. He skillfully inserted it into the lock, turned it, and swung the door open. Taking charge, he ensured that the other men removed their shoes before crossing the threshold. With everyone inside, he firmly closed and locked the door behind them.
Barefoot, they proceeded through the hallway, eventually reaching the cozy corner living room nestled at the back of the bungalow. Inside, an L-shaped couch centered around a coffee table, with a few scattered chairs completing the room’s furnishings. The six men found their places in various seats around the room.
Once comfortably seated, two of the men, previously observed entering the bungalow with backpacks and duffel bags, retrieved their bags and placed them carefully on the coffee table.
As soon as these two individuals took those actions, the other four men who had previously engaged in conversation fell into complete silence. They turned their attention toward the bags resting on the table, their expressions revealing the profound significance of what lay within. This importance was underscored by the fact that the group had taken the precaution of closing most of the curtains across all the windows within the bungalow, ensuring that prying eyes from outside remained oblivious to the contents of those bags.
Once the two individuals unzipped the duffel bags and backpack, and began to reveal their contents on the table, it became abundantly evident why tension permeated the room. Nestled within the bags were firearms, and in the Netherlands, private citizens are strictly prohibited from possessing such weapons.
During the following hour, the two individuals responsible for bringing the firearms into the bungalow commenced providing instructions to the other four men on the proper operation of the sleek black pistols and AK-47 rifles. They imparted knowledge on loading and reloading the weapons, as well as how to aim effectively. The session included numerous dry firing exercises, which involved pulling the trigger of an unloaded gun. The four eager students attentively absorbed the guidance of their two instructors, gradually gaining confidence as excitement welled up within the room. At one memorable moment, one of the students boldly seized two AK-47 rifles, holding one in each hand and playfully mimicking simultaneous firing, reminiscent of scenes from Rambo movies.
However, when one of the two instructors reached into one of the bags and retrieved a new item, a vest, placing it on the coffee table, the atmosphere in the room immediately shifted. Now, the students appeared more anxious than excited. One of the four students eventually stepped forward, somewhat reluctantly, and extended his arm to allow the instructor to put the vest on him. As the vest was placed on the student, it became apparent that it was a suicide vest, with pockets containing explosives and wires protruding from them. While one of the instructors demonstrated to the student how to trigger the detonation, someone in the background remarked, “When the police arrive, you can take them with you.”
A little more than two hours later, the six men completed their task and began packing their assortment of new weapons into bags. Afterward, they rose to depart, but it was the students who carried the bags of weapons, not the two instructors. Upon exiting the bungalow, the six men put on their shoes, secured the bungalow, and then, as captured by a surveillance camera, the two instructors walked away from the bungalow towards a separate vehicle. They drove away, leaving the four men in possession of the weapons. These four individuals then proceeded to a nearby white cargo van, where they joined another member who hadn’t been inside the bungalow but was a crucial part of their group – the designated driver.
As the quartet of armed individuals neared the white van, the driver caught sight of them. Swiftly, he exited the vehicle, circled around to the rear, and unlocked the rear doors that granted access to the windowless cargo compartment. The four armed men promptly entered, and the driver sealed the van shut before returning to the driver’s seat. Without much delay, he departed from the parking lot, steering northward toward Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands.
Annually, Amsterdam takes center stage as the host of one of the world’s grandest gay pride parades and gatherings. This location holds special meaning for the LGBTQ community, as it was in 2001 that the inaugural gay marriage bill was officially enacted, establishing the Netherlands as the pioneering nation to legalize same-sex marriage worldwide. Consequently, for one week each year, Amsterdam’s streets and canals become a vibrant canvas, attracting hundreds of thousands of individuals who unite to champion LGBTQ rights and revel in the celebration of their diverse sexual orientations, preferences, and identities.
The occupants of the unmarked white van were determined to employ their newly acquired weaponry and training to inflict maximum harm upon the parade attendees. They harbored aspirations of executing a terrorist act that would match or surpass the 2015 Paris nightclub attack, which resulted in the death or injury of over 500 individuals and reverberated throughout Europe.
Half an hour later, the four individuals seated at the rear of the van, concealed from view by its windowless interior, sensed a gradual deceleration and departure from the main road. The van did not come to a complete halt; instead, it began to slow down inexplicably. This raised suspicion among the occupants since they had no apparent reason to reduce their speed, and they remained a substantial 30-minute drive away from their intended destination. Reflexively, the men reached down to ensure that their firearms were securely stored within their bags, hidden from view, should anyone unexpectedly open the back door. Their intent was to keep their possession of illegal firearms a closely guarded secret.
As the van continued its excruciatingly slow progress, with no apparent explanation for the crawl, anxiety began to grip the men seated in the rear of the vehicle. It’s important to note that their view was limited; confined within the van, they couldn’t observe the external circumstances or grasp the cause of the halt. However, a faint fissure in the partition that separated the back of the van from the driver’s compartment offered a glimmer of hope. Desperate to gain insight into the situation ahead and discern the reason for the driver’s sudden stop, the men in the rear of the van stretched their necks and peered through this minuscule crack.
As these men peered through the narrow opening, their eyes widened in fear at the sight beyond. Panic surged through them, prompting frantic attempts to unzip their bags and retrieve their firearms. With trembling hands, they managed to grasp their guns just as the van’s doors swung open abruptly. The men in the backseat immediately unleashed a volley of blind gunfire at the exposed entrances. Yet, when they squeezed their triggers, a shocking realization struck them—their weapons were nothing more than convincing replicas, rendering their attempts futile.
They had been sold to the group by individuals who enthusiastically swung their doors wide open—the police, dressed in tactical gear with their K-9 units. However, the group was aware that these individuals were armed with imitation firearms and sporting phony suicide vests filled with inert explosives; there was no genuine danger lurking inside the van. Consequently, the police forcefully swung the van’s doors open and released their dogs. The canines promptly leaped into the vehicle, prompting the would-be terrorists to scream and fire their imitation guns at the approaching dogs, who proceeded to tear them to pieces. Any attempts to escape were met with the police using their pistols to subdue the individuals, ultimately leaving all of these aspiring terrorists either curled up in the fetal position, weeping, or huddled with their hands shielding their heads.
As it turned out, the two individuals responsible for bringing duffel bags filled with firearms into the bungalow alongside the other men were not actually fellow terrorists. Instead, they were undercover police officers, members of a specialized national anti-terrorism team who had successfully infiltrated the terrorist cell. These undercover officers were responsible for supplying the terrorists with fake guns and simulated explosives. Moreover, they orchestrated the entire meeting at the bungalow, strategically placing surveillance cameras and listening devices throughout the premises. Additionally, they managed to discreetly bug the white van, anticipating that it would be the mode of transportation for the terrorists as they left the bungalow.
On October 8, 2020, all individuals involved in the attempted terrorism, including two who were not captured on camera but were clearly complicit, received sentences ranging from 10 to 17 years in prison. In the meantime, the Amsterdam Pride Parade proceeded smoothly without any disruptions.