AMSTERDAM - In Amsterdam-Osdorp, a drab flat holds the keys to solving the two notorious liquidations; those of René Karamatali (the sewer murder) and Bryan Stein (the trunk murder). All four suspects now detained for these double murders met there, according to research by De Telegraaf.It also turns out that the Amsterdam tokoholder Anand J. (47) is seen as the mastermind behind
the liquidations. At his tropical vegetable stores, the murder victims had their last
appointment. Weeks later, they were found dead. The latest arrest was last Tuesday. On that day, this newspaper revealed that the detective team was on the perpetrators' necks. Just hours before that same day Opsporing Verzocht covered the case,
investigators raided Ingrid D.'s apartment home.

Coincidence

This 50-year-old woman had a relationship with prime suspect Anand J. For the last two years, the Surinamese couple, parents of four children, had been living separately. The police had been inside before, following a shooting last October. During that search, personal items belonging to both murder victims were discovered by chance. A few houses away in the same apartment building lived Ingrid's girlfriend, the obese Surinamese Marion van de L. (43). Marion visited Ingrid many times daily. Their bond was so close that Ingrid even raised Marion's youngest son (3). This Marion was arrested on Feb. 10; her boyfriend Dwight (35) had been arrested two months earlier.

Appearance loops

Van de L. was distrusted by those around her. Although she was on unemployment benefits, she happily moonlighted and spent money like water. Van de L. sometimes worked in Anand J's tokhes. The four arrests have created a sad situation in the apartment building. Six children of the arrested women are now without parents. Some of Ingrid's children witnessed the raid by the detective team. These were not the first traumatic experiences for the children. On the night of Oct. 16-17, an argument broke out in Ingrid D.'s apartment building. At around one o'clock in the morning, shots were fired. The stricken neighbor Marion was worked outside by those present and collapsed on the sidewalk. Local residents hung out of apartment windows as paramedics stunted the gunshot wound. Her friend Dwight was hit in the leg. Marion underwent surgery and was in VU Medical Center for a long time. Three of those present in the shooting are now among those arrested in the double liquidation case. That they were caught for those murders is purely coincidental. The simple shooting was reason for police to take a look at Ingrid's home. In the process, belongings were seized, including those of René Karamatali and Bryan Stein. No bells were ringing for the police at that time, as both men were not even missing. They had been last seen just a few hours earlier and probably shot shortly thereafter.

Appointments

J. Bryan Stein was supposed to come to the Micromarkt in Amsterdam-Zuidoost on October 14, Karamatali had an appointment at the Flevo Bazaar tropical store in Almere on October 16. Stein's body was found on December 1 in the trunk of his Peugeot 206, which had been parked for weeks in a residential area in Nieuw-Vennep. Karamatali was found on Nov. 14 in a sewer in Almere-Buiten. Whether Anand J. had an account to settle with both men is not clear. What is clear, however, is that all three men were or are acquaintances of police and judicial authorities. The criminal investigation department is cautious about the background of the double liquidation: "In view of the importance of the investigation we cannot make any announcements about the motive and mutual relations." Remarkably, on Surinamese Internet forums there was early speculation that Anand J. would be behind the murders.

Defaulters

The operator of exotic fruit and vegetable stores in Amsterdam and surrounding areas is clearly no sweetheart himself. He has a criminal record and is known as a defaulter. In one of the stores he ran, Toko Tamara in Amsterdam-Osdorp, he had rent arrears for months. He also did not pay his suppliers, according to business associates. That's why he was evicted from his Toko six months ago. Anand told Amsterdam that he would say goodbye to the Netherlands and continue his business in Suriname. He broke off all his business contacts and flew back to Suriname. His new career will have to be postponed for a while. At the request of the Dutch criminal investigation team, he was arrested in Suriname on February 10 and extradited three days later.