Netherlands: Vigilante attack on Muslim woman’s home after footage of flowers being stolen from grave goes viral

Dutch police urged residents to leave matters to the authorities after the alleged perpetrator's house was egged on Monday evening

By Thomas Brooke
3 Min Read

A Muslim woman’s home in Apeldoorn-Zuid was targeted in a vigilante-style attack Monday night after she was filmed allegedly stealing a bouquet of funeral flowers from a local cemetery.

The viral footage, reposted with the English translation by Remix News, triggered a wave of public anger that spilled into the street.

In the video, a fully veiled woman and another in Islamic dress are seen attempting to remove flowers from a grave on Oude Beekbergerweg. A man confronts her, saying, “Look at this. Stolen from a grave! There, by the cemetery,” before throwing the bouquet to the ground. The flowers had been placed at the grave of Leffert Veenstra, who had recently passed away.

By Monday evening, tensions had escalated. Groups of young people on scooters gathered near the home of the woman believed to be in the video. Cars drove slowly past, and eggs were thrown at the house.

Police were called to the scene multiple times. “Emotions were running high, and at that point, we decided to focus on restoring peace to the neighborhood,” said police spokesperson Sven Strijbosch, as cited by de Gelderlander. However, more eggs were thrown when officers temporarily left the area.

Around midnight, a woman — reportedly one of the women in the video — was escorted by police from the house to a waiting van as bystanders booed.

“This is a very heavy blow to the entire caravan community,” Peter Palmen, a close friend of the deceased, told local media. Family and friends of Veenstra expressed deep shock and anger over the incident.

Strijbosch urged the public to refrain from further escalation. “The fact is that it’s not a good idea to take matters into your own hands in an intimidating way,” he said.

“We know everyone involved, and we’ll be considering the next steps in the coming days. The call is very clear: Leave this to the police.”

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