A major new development has emerged in the trial over the killing of Ebrahim Buzhu, aka the ‘butcher of Amsterdam’, as proceedings get underway at the Provincial Court of Cadiz.
The Dutch national, who was found shot dead in January 2022 in a rural track in Chiclana de la Frontera, is at the centre of a complex case now complicated by the existence of a third suspect.
DNA leads to third man in prison
During the opening session, the defence revealed that a third individual, a Moroccan national with a criminal record, is currently in prison after being arrested in Italy in 2025.
Investigators reportedly linked him to the scene after finding his DNA on cigarette butts and tissues near the victim’s body.
The defence successfully requested that this evidence be presented to the jury, arguing it could be key to understanding what really happened.
Two men on trial
The two defendants, identified only as Francisco B. and Antonio V., deny any role in the killing.
Their lawyer insists neither man was in Cadiz at the time, pushing for full acquittal and suggesting the murder was carried out by others.
Prosecutors: Execution-style killing
According to prosecutors, the two accused travelled from Malaga to Chiclana in a rental car on 15 January 2022, armed with a handgun.
They allegedly shot Buzhu in the temple in an industrial area before driving several kilometres to burn the vehicle in nearby woodland, in an attempt, the prosecution says, to destroy evidence.
Each man faces 28 years in prison if convicted, including charges of murder, illegal possession of weapons and arson, along with €274,000 in compensation for the victim’s family.
Links to organised crime
The victim’s background adds another layer to the case.
Buzhu was reportedly a protected witness who had cooperated with police against a leader of the Dutch ‘mocro mafia’ – a criminal network linked to large-scale drug trafficking across Europe.
The defence argues he had a ‘price on his head’ and was targeted in a revenge killing orchestrated by the same organisation he once belonged to.
Jury trial underway
The case is being heard by a jury, meaning nine citizens will decide whether the two defendants are guilty.
With new evidence now introduced and competing narratives emerging, the trial is shaping up to be one of the most closely watched cases in Cadiz in recent years.
Who was Ebrahim Buzhu?
Buzhu was a Dutch national of Moroccan origin and was known as ‘the butcher of Amsterdam‘ because of his father, who after spending several years in Melilla emigrated to the Amsterdam and opened a butcher’s shop.
Buzhu, however, chose a different path, becoming involved in drug trafficking.
In 2015, after testifying against Taghi – one of the most powerful figures in the Dutch criminal underworld – Buzhu fled to the Costa del Sol, settling in Malaga, where he continued to profit from cocaine and hashish trafficking.
He worked with criminal groups of Moroccan and Algerian origin that controlled drug routes between the Netherlands and Belgium.
Although Taghi was eventually imprisoned, Buzhu remained fearful, worried about reprisals or a possible settling of scores for cooperating with the authorities.
How was he killed?
In January 2022, residents walking along a rural track in the Pago del Humo area, on the outskirts of Chiclana de la Frontera, discovered the body of a man and raised the alarm.
The victim had been shot at point-blank range in the head. A single bullet entered through his left temple and exited at the right occipital area, according to findings by the Guardia Civil during the investigation known as Operation Stoom.
Around nine kilometres from where the body was found, officers later located the victim’s car, completely burned out between two abandoned warehouses in an industrial estate, after it had been set alight using fuel.
Investigators confirmed the deceased was Ebrahim Buzhu, a Dutch national known as ‘the butcher of Amsterdam’.
He had been a protected witness after exposing the activities of the so-called Mocro Mafia, an international criminal network involved in drug trafficking in the Netherlands.
Buzhu’s court testimony was key to the imprisonment of the Dutch crime boss Ridouan Taghi.
Read more Andalucia news at the Spanish Eye.
