Mickey Fudge (31) shot dead by police on Westeinde, next to the Nederlandsche Bank.

The 31-year-old Michael “Mickey” Fudge, a British-born Amsterdam resident who also had Dutch nationality, was shot dead by police on 6 February 2019 near De Nederlandsche Bank on Frederiksplein/Westeinde in Amsterdam. Around 7:15 p.m., police received a report of a man with a firearm near the bank. According to the Public Prosecution Service, officers saw a man carrying a firearm or something resembling one; when he moved toward the police, the officers opened fire. It later turned out that Fudge had been carrying a replica firearm that was visually indistinguishable from a real gun. More than twenty shots were fired during the incident, and a cyclist was also injured by a stray bullet. According to his mother, Tanja Samojlenko, Mickey had suffered from severe anxiety disorders and depression since childhood, and had previously said that he wanted to be shot by police or military police at De Nederlandsche Bank. After investigation, the Public Prosecution Service concluded that the case involved “suicide by cop”: Fudge had allegedly set out that evening to be killed by police fire. The Rijksrecherche investigated the officers’ actions. Later reporting stated that prosecutors concluded Fudge had a replica weapon and intended to be shot by police; the officers involved had seriously considered the possibility of a terrorist attack at the time and, according to the investigation, acted correctly. The case led to public debate about police violence, the number of shots fired and how authorities respond to people in severe psychological distress, but no criminal case was brought against the officers.