Volkert Van Der Graaf

Volkert van der Graaf (born 9 July 1969) is known for assassinating the Dutch politician Pim Fortuyn on 6 May 2002 during the political campaign for the Dutch general elections of 2002. Van der Graaf was an animal rights and environmental activist, founder of a group that worked through litigation. In court at his trial, van der Graaf said he murdered Fortuyn to stop him from exploiting Muslims as "scapegoats" and targeting "the weak members of society" in seeking political power.

He was arrested shortly after shooting Fortuyn, who died immediately. In court Van der Graaf testified that he had become alarmed that Fortuyn was using Muslims and immigrants as scapegoats in a campaign to seek political power. He thought the politician endangered society with his controversial statements. Later Van der Graaf expressed doubt over his actions. His trial started on 27 March 2003. He was convicted on 15 April 2003 and sentenced to 18 years in prison. The trial generated large interest from the Dutch public, especially Fortuyn supporters. Van der Graaf appealed for the reduction of the sentence to 16 years, but on 18 July 2003, the appeals court upheld the previous sentence.