Prosecutor demands two years in prison against Quincy Promes for stabbing cousin

The prosecution has demanded two years in prison against professional footballer Quincy Promes. According to the prosecution, the 50-time Oranje international is guilty of aggravated assault on his cousin, at a family party in 2020.

However, attempted murder or manslaughter, for which Promes has also been charged, cannot be proven, according to the prosecution. The verdict is likely to follow in two weeks.

The victim’s sister spoke on his behalf in court:

The victim was stabbed in his knee at the end of the party in Abcoude, rupturing a tendon. The 31-year-old Promes, who now plays soccer in Russia and will not attend the trial in Amsterdam, denies being the perpetrator.

The prosecution, however, is convinced of his guilt. In court, the prosecutor pointed to, among other things, apps and tapped phone calls shortly after the incident, in which the then Ajacied allegedly admitted to stabbing his cousin.

Moreover, in a phone conversation with his father, Promes suggested that he had actually aimed for his cousin’s neck. “I wasn’t aiming for his leg,” he said. “He’s lucky.”

The prosecution nevertheless finds that it cannot be proven that the soccer player at the party actually intended to kill his cousin. Witnesses may have seen him repeatedly strike him, but not, for example, the upper body.

The prosecution says Promes intended to cause serious injury. His father and a sister of the victim jumped in to prevent worse.

The footballer started to play for his own judge, the prosecution said. “He should have taken responsibility because as a professional soccer player he serves as a role model,” the prosecutor said.

Promes’ guilt would also be evident from the fact that he and his cousin negotiated compensation in the months following the incident. Only when they could not agree on that, in November 2020, did the nephew report it to the police.

The victim is still struggling with the consequences two and a half years later. He had to undergo lengthy rehabilitation, can no longer squat or run and suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder. “He often sits apathetically looking ahead,” attorney Yehudi Moszkowicz said of his client, who was sitting next to him.

The victim’s sister exercised her right to speak in court on behalf of her brother. She lashed out at Quincy Promes. “You have shit on your family, you even let your parents lie for you. Your conscience will deal with you, I wish you good luck in Russia.”

After stating the claim, Promes’ lawyer Robert Malewicz came to speak. He argued that the tapped telephone conversations should not be used as evidence because the taps were made in another criminal investigation that had been going on for some time into the footballer. According to Malewicz, this violated the right to a fair trial.

That other investigation, into drug smuggling, among other things, is still ongoing, by the way. That is one of the reasons the Spartak footballer is not in the courtroom in Amsterdam today. He fears being detained for questioning, Malewicz said.

The lawyer argued for acquittal. He acknowledged that the soccer player went to get redress from his cousin, but said he was not the one who stabbed. A mixed picture emerges from the witness statements, and thus, according to Malewicz, it cannot be determined exactly what happened at the party.

According to his lawyer, the statements Promes made after the incident in apps and phone calls should be seen as “grandstanding and tough talk.” Malewicz pointed out that the footballer had been drinking heavily.