Netherlands assisted suicide group leader arrested.

Alex Schadenberg
Executive Director, Euthanasia Prevention Coalition

suicide powder

Yesterday I published an article by Randy Knol, concerning the arrest of Jos van Wijk, the chairman of the Coöperatie Laatste Wil, an assisted suicide advocacy group. van Wijk was arrested for allegedly participating in a criminal organization.

The NL Times reported that:

The police arrested the chairman of Coöperatie Laatste Wil in Apeldoorn on Wednesday, on suspicion of involvement in assisted suicide. According to the Public Prosecution Service (OM), the 73-year-old chairman Jos van Wijk is suspected of participating in a criminal organization with the intent to commit or plan assisted suicide. Coöperatie Laatste Wil advocates for self-determination around the deathbed.

Van Wijk's home was searched on Tuesday, according to the OM. Elsewhere in the country, another home was also searched. Van Wijk will be questioned on Wednesday, his lawyer Tim Vis reported.

The investigation was launched in response to a number of recent suicide cases, the OM said. At this stage, the judiciary does not yet want to say how many cases are involved, nor where they occurred. Lawyer Vis also does not know this yet. "We have not yet been informed of the specific reason," said the lawyer.

In July the NL Times reported that a 28 year old man from Eindhoven Netherlands was charged with assisting multiple suicides with a lethal powder. According to the article:

Prosecutors announced the arrest of an Eindhoven man accused of providing fatal doses of a potentially lethal drug to people who wanted to commit suicide. It was not revealed how many people died as a result. The public prosecutor (OM) said the suspect was paid an undisclosed sum for his involvement.

Ximena Knol died in Feb 2018

The arrest of the man in Eindhoven, known as Alex S is connected to the arrest of van Wijk. We do not know if the prosecutor considers Coöperatie Laatste Wil to be acting as a criminal organization.

I also published an article by Randy Knol, the father of Ximena, the 19-year-old who died in February 2018 by ingesting the suicide powder known as "Substance X." I explained that for the past three years Randy has been working to get the lethal powder banned.