The Amsterdam Herald

Armed police officer prosecuted over fatal shooting of unarmed 17-year-old

Photo by Gerard Stolk

A police officer who shot dead an unarmed teenager at a railway station is to be prosecuted for manslaughter.

It follows an investigation into the death of 17-year-old Rishi Chandrikasing at Hollands Spoor station in The Hague last November.

Armed police went to the station in response to reports that a youth had been making threats while carrying a firearm.

When police arrived the teenager tried to flee and appeared to reach for his trousers, prompting a police officer to open fire. Rishi was hit in the neck and died soon afterwards.

The firearms officer is understood to have been aiming for his leg, but camera footage from the station shows he was running when he fired the shot.

The inquiry by the National Police Investigations Department (Rijksrecherche) also revealed that the incident began following an argument between the teenager and a British tourist at the station.

The tourist reported the incident to police and claimed Rishi was carrying a gun. The public prosecutor’s office (Openbare Ministerie) later confirmed that the teenager was unarmed.

His family filed a complaint against the police marksman and the tourist, insisting that the case should be brought before a court, regardless of the outcome of the inquiry. 

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Source: NOS: Vervolging agent voor doden Rishi

Read previous story: Inquiry into fatal police shooting of 17-year-old at railway station