Current:Home > Contact-usDutch court sentences former Pakistani cricketer to 12 years over a bounty for a far-right lawmaker-LoTradeCoin
Dutch court sentences former Pakistani cricketer to 12 years over a bounty for a far-right lawmaker
View Date:2024-12-23 11:54:48
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — A Dutch court on Monday sentenced a former Pakistani cricketer to 12 years in prison over allegations that he incited people to kill firebrand anti-Islam lawmaker Geert Wilders.
Khalid Latif, 37, stood accused of offering a bounty of some 21,000 euros ($23,000) to anybody who killed Wilders. Latif did not appear in the high-security courtroom near Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport for the trial and he was not represented by a lawyer.
He’s believed to be in Pakistan, which has no extradition agreement with the Netherlands.
Throughout the trial, Latif was not identified by name, but prosecutors said in a statement that a video posted online in 2018 showed a famous Pakistan cricketer offering the money for killing Wilders. Wilders himself identified the suspect as Latif.
“The court has now ruled that a long-term unconditional term of imprisonment is the only suitable punishment for these types of offenses,” a statement said.
Dutch lawmaker Wilders, who was present for the verdict, has lived under round-the-clock protection for years because of repeated threats to his life sparked by his fierce criticism of Islam.
The alleged bounty offer came after Wilders said he would organize a competition of cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad. Many Muslims consider any depictions of Muhammad to be blasphemous. Ultimately, the contest did not go ahead, but the plan sparked outrage in the Muslim world.
An international warrant has been issued for Latif’s arrest. Dutch prosecutors have said that they had been trying to contact him since 2018, first as a witness and then to answer the charges. However, they said they hadn’t received any reply from the Pakistani authorities.
In 2017, Latif, 37, was banned for five years from all forms of cricket for his role in a match-fixing scandal in the Pakistan Super League.
veryGood! (88)
Related
- Mike Tyson is expected to honor late daughter during Jake Paul fight. Here's how.
- Festival-Approved Bags That Are Hands-Free & Trendy for Coachella, Stagecoach & Beyond
- Get $40 Off Bio Ionic Curling Irons, 56% Off Barefoot Cardigans, 50% Off DreamCloud Mattresses & More
- California Leads the Nation in Emissions of a Climate Super-Pollutant, Study Finds
- MVSU football player killed, driver injured in crash after police chase
- Alabama lawmakers advance a bill that would revamp the state ethics law
- Don Winslow's book 'City in Ruins' will be his last. He is retiring to fight MAGA
- Oliver Hudson walks back previous comments about mom Goldie Hawn: 'There was no trauma'
- Louisiana asks court to block part of ruling against Ten Commandments in classrooms
- 2 Mississippi catfish farms settle suit alleging immigrants were paid more than local Black workers
Ranking
- Mega Millions winning numbers for November 12 drawing: Jackpot rises to $361 million
- Iran vows deadly suspected Israeli airstrike on its consulate in Damascus will not go unanswered
- Video shows suspect trying to outrun police on horseback before being caught
- Lawmakers in GOP-led Nebraska debate bill to raise sales tax
- Biden, Harris participate in Veterans Day ceremony | The Excerpt
- Oklahoma court considers whether to allow the US’ first publicly funded Catholic school
- SMU hires Southern California's Andy Enfield as men's basketball coach
- To the parents of a newly-diagnosed child on World Autism Day: One day you will bake a cake
Recommendation
-
Armie Hammer Says His Mom Gifted Him a Vasectomy for His 38th Birthday
-
Mega Millions winning numbers in April 2 drawing: Jackpot climbs to $67 million
-
Lizzo Clarifies Comments on Quitting
-
5-year-old killed, teenager injured in ATV crash in Kentucky: 'Vehicle lost control'
-
Why Jersey Shore's Jenni JWoww Farley May Not Marry Her Fiancé Zack Clayton
-
Chiefs show they're not above using scare tactics on fans for stadium tax vote
-
Watch Cher perform 'Believe' with Jennifer Hudson at the iHeartRadio Music Awards
-
Alabama lawmakers advance a bill that would revamp the state ethics law