A Dublin man, Mr George Mitchell, has been remanded in custody in Amsterdam for up to 10 days, charged with involvement in a £4 million computer supplies robbery from an Irish truck in the Netherlands earlier this week. The Irish driver of the truck has also been charged.
The truck was being stripped of its load when Dutch police, acting on a tip-off from gardai, swooped early on Thursday. Mr Mitchell, also known as The Penguin, was charged with robbery.
Three accomplices, Dutch nationals, were also charged and remanded in custody before an examining magistrate in the town of Harlem yesterday. A fourth Dutch man, the owner of a shed where the stolen computer supplies were being stored, was released after police decided that his role in the affair was minor.
Mr Mitchell (47), originally from Ballyfermot, faces a maximum of six years' imprisonment if convicted. He is due to appear at a closed session of Harlem District Court within 10 days, when a decision on whether to prolong the custody order will be taken.
In the meantime, he and the other men detained are being held in different parts of the central Netherlands. They will be transferred to a high-security prison if the courts refuse to release them pending their trial.
According to a spokesman for the Dutch Public Prosecutor's Office, it is unclear whether any or all of those in custody will be freed. The trial will not take place for up to three months. A spokesman, Mr Wim de Bruin, said: "We are not aware of a request from the Irish police at this stage concerning Mr Mitchell. It is a Dutch crime and must be disposed of through our courts first."
He added that he could understand there would be concern in Ireland that the suspects should remain in custody. The Dutch authorities would certainly be taking such concern into consideration.
Mr Mitchell's lawyer, Mr Robert van der Velde, said he hoped to be in court next Wednesday, arguing for his client to be released. "Mr Mitchell has committed no offence before in this country. This is a relatively minor case, as no arms or violence were used", he said.
According to his lawyer, Mr Mitchell is "a serious businessman" who applied for residence status recently in the Netherlands. A decision on the application was "still awaited by the Dutch immigration authorities", he said.
Mr Mitchell reportedly left Ireland 18 months ago after his name appeared on a purported IRA death list. He has since moved between Amsterdam and The Hague.
Dutch police made the arrests following a joint operation with the Garda National Bureau of Criminal Investigation. As the truck crossed the Dutch border from Belgium, a special police squad in unmarked cars was on its tail. Dutch detectives have described Mr Mitchell's role in the robbery as "a key one". The truck driver has been charged with embezzlement as well as with stealing the computer supplies.