Mass Arrests in Netherlands After Deadly Drug Gang Shootout
Dutch police arrested 34 people after a pre-dawn attack on a Gelderland farmhouse killed a security guard and seriously wounded two officers in a suspected drug trafficking revenge assault.
'Nederland is een narcostaat'
Het Gelderse dorpje #Overasselt stond volledig op z'n kop. Er werd een bewaker voor de deur van een pand doodgeschoten. De aanslag wordt gelieerd aan drugscrimineel Bolle Jos, Jos Leijdekkers.
Misdaadverslaggever @maaiketimmerman noemt de beelden… pic.twitter.com/D50zY8JSPS
— Nieuws van de Dag (@Nieuwsvandedag_) September 1, 2026
The violent incident unfolded around 4am on September 1 in the village of Overasselt, when more than 20 masked men, several armed with machine guns, descended on a property on Ewijkseweg, according to Brussels Signal.
Surveillance footage captured by De Telegraaf shows the attackers opening fire on a stationary car. The victim, a 51-year-old security guard hired after the same property was attacked in July 2025, was killed at the scene.
When police arrived, they came under direct fire. Two officers sustained serious injuries, with one initially facing life-threatening wounds. Both have since been reported out of danger. Officers returned warning shots as suspects scattered into surrounding fields and onto nearby motorways.
Village Sealed as Manhunt Unfolds
Authorities ordered residents to remain indoors with doors and windows secured. Large sections of the village were cordoned off throughout September 1, with the lockdown lifted only late that evening.
“Nederlanders”#NOS #Wijchen pic.twitter.com/RX2pD9jNuy
— Erik (@eriknld2) September 1, 2026
Police deployed the Special Intervention Unit alongside helicopters and tracking dogs in a massive manhunt. Arrests followed across Gelderland and Limburg provinces, including at Nijmegen railway station, near Vogelzang, on the A73 and A76 motorways, and in a maize field.
Those detained include Dutch, Belgian, French and Algerian nationals. Police seized weapons, vehicles and data storage devices. Some suspects remain at large. All those arrested face suspicion of murder and manslaughter, attempted murder and preparing a kidnapping.
International Gang, Multiple Crime Scenes
Monique Vinkesteijn, deputy chief prosecutor, confirmed the group in custody was international in composition and said investigators are still working to establish each detainee’s connection to the 10 crime scenes identified across the country.
She acknowledged that the July 2025 shooting at the same property was tied to a longstanding conflict, though she declined to elaborate. Two individuals have already been convicted over that earlier attack, she said.
Dutch media outlets have linked the assault to the criminal network of fugitive cocaine trafficker Jos Leijdekkers, known as Bolle Jos. Police and underworld sources cited by Het Parool suggest the raid was motivated by revenge over several hundred kilogrammes of cocaine—Het Parool places the figure at 812kg—believed to have been trafficked by Leijdekkers’ organisation.
That shipment was reportedly seized on August 29 at the French-Spanish border in a Dutch-registered lorry.
Lawyer Denies Connection
Guy Weski, Leijdekkers’ lawyer, stated he had no knowledge of any connection to the incident. His legal team later issued a statement saying Leijdekkers emphatically distances himself from what they called unfounded allegations.
The farmhouse itself has a history steeped in conflict with law enforcement. A drug laboratory was discovered on the property following a fire in 2019. Armed men appeared at the gate in 2024, and in July 2025 a man fired 25 rounds from a Kalashnikov at the entrance gate.
The shooter, then aged 21, later confessed and was sentenced to juvenile detention. Earlier this year, Jan G. was sentenced to four years in prison in connection with the property; he is currently appealing and remains at liberty.
Local residents later reported that a horse was shot in the leg during the firefight.
Officials Condemn Violence
Joerie Minses, mayor of Heumen municipality, which includes Overasselt, called the events utterly unacceptable and said they go beyond all bounds. He told public broadcaster NOS he was deeply shocked and described the night as un-Dutch.
Justice and security minister David van Weel also condemned the appalling violence, noting there is one death to be mourned. He expressed solidarity with the wounded officers and residents who lived through the ordeal, stating authorities will not tolerate such violence.
Van Weel told NOS that armed groups of that size opening fire on police were unprecedented and new in the Netherlands.
Fugitive at Centre of Investigation
Leijdekkers, 35, from Breda in southern Netherlands, has been on the Dutch and Europol most-wanted lists since 2022. He was convicted in absentia to 24 years in the Netherlands for cocaine trafficking.
With information from Brussels Signal
