Dutch commando gunned down in Indiana dies from wounds
A Dutch commando shot outside an Indianapolis hotel Saturday morning has died from his wounds.
Simmie Poetsema was with three other soldiers from the Netherlands when an alleged disturbance broke out around 3:30 a.m., the Dutch Defense Ministry said. Two soldiers accompanying the 26-year-old commando were also injured, but are said to be “knowledgeable and approachable.”
The trio of troops are members of the Dutch Commando Troops Corps and were training under the U.S. Department of Defense at the Muscatatuck Urban Training Center in southeast Indiana.
An entrance to the Muscatatuck Urban Training Center is closed in Butlerville, Ind., Monday, Aug. 29, 2022. Three members of the Dutch Commando Corps, who were training at the center, were shot outside their hotel in downtown Indianapolis early Saturday morning. The Dutch Defense Ministry says that one has died. (Michael Conroy/)
Police in Indianapolis said the injured commandos became involved in an altercation with an unidentified fourth person when the gunfire began outside a Hampton Inn in Indianapolis’ entertainment district. The servicemembers were reportedly in the Indiana state capital enjoying recreational time.
Poetsema was surrounded by “family and colleagues” when he died, the Defense Ministry said Monday. Officials there said the special forces troops were staying in the hotel where they were shot.
The Muscatatuck Urban Training Center is described as a 1,000 acre “globally unique, urban and rural, multi-domain operating environment” recognized as the DOD’s largest urban training center.
With News Wire Services
