Sep 30, 2023 at 5:03 am
The number of deployments of the heavily armed police team Special Interventions (DSI) for people with confused behavior has doubled compared to three years ago. This is evident from figures from the police that NU.nl requested.
Until the end of August this year, the special police service had to take action 160 times because of someone with confused behavior. Last year that was 180 times. In 2020 that was less than half: 83 times.
The DSI also had to take action on Thursday in the shootings in Rotterdam. It is not yet clear whether Thursday’s deployment was also due to confused behavior.
It is clear that the suspect, Fouad L., showed “worrying behavior”, according to the Public Prosecution Service (OM). He had already been convicted of animal abuse and suffered from psychosis. For that reason, the Public Prosecution Service already warned Erasmus MC about him.
What is the Special Interventions Service?
Members of the Special Interventions Service come from the police, the Commando Troops, the Marine Corps and the Royal Military Police and have undergone special training. DSI officers do that work full-time and no longer work for other parts within the police or Defense. The DSI falls under the responsibility of the National Police Unit. In total there are hundreds of DSIs in the Netherlands. An Arrest and Support Team consists of eight DSI officers and a commander.
‘Normal’ bets due to confused behavior also increased considerably
A police spokesperson does not have an explanation for the doubling since 2020. But the number of ‘normal’ police deployments due to people with confused behavior has also increased enormously. The number of reports tripled in ten years.
The total number of DSI deployments has remained approximately the same in recent years. In 2020, the service had to be deployed more than eighteen hundred times, last year this was more than seventeen hundred times. Until the end of August this year, the special unit was in action almost fourteen hundred times.
The DSI falls under the police, but consists of police officers, Defense personnel and members of the Royal Military Police. The service has heavy weapons and special techniques to arrest or eliminate a suspect in exceptional circumstances.
The DSI was also deployed during the hostage crisis at the Apple Store in Amsterdam in February 2022. We explained exactly what that team did and how it works in this article:
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2023-09-30 03:03:00
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