Dutch prosecutors on Friday pressed for stiff prison sentences against a father and his two sons accused of murdering 18-year-old Ryan Al Najjar over what they considered her “Western” lifestyle, which they believed brought shame to their family.
Al Najjar’s body was found on May 28, 2024, in a lake near Joure in the northern Netherlands, six days after she was declared missing.
Investigators said the father and sons targeted the victim for resisting conservative family expectations, including her refusal to wear a headscarf.
A TikTok livestream showing the deceased without a headscarf and wearing makeup was reportedly viewed by the family as a deep embarrassment and may have triggered the fatal attack.
According to prosecutors, her brothers travelled to Rotterdam, convinced her to accompany them, and took her to a secluded area where their father joined them.
“They saw Ryan as a burden that had to be removed,” the Public Prosecution Service said. “Just because she was a young woman who wanted to live her own life.”
She was allegedly strangled, bound with about 60 feet of tape, and thrown alive into the water. DNA recovered from under her fingernails is said to link her father, identified as 53-year-old Khaled Al Najjar, to the crime.
Local media identified the brothers as Mohamed and Muhanad. All three face murder charges, though prosecutors added that the father fled to Syria shortly after the killing and may be difficult to extradite.
Prosecutors were seeking a 25-year sentence for Khaled and 20-year terms for each of his sons.
The court is expected to deliver its verdict on January 5.
