Spartak Moscow’s Dutch striker, Quincy Promes, was sentenced on Monday to 18 months in prison by an Amsterdam court for stabbing a cousin at a family party.
The 31-year-old international, who had pleaded not guilty to “attempted manslaughter,” lives in Russia and was not present at his trial.
Promes was accused of stabbing his cousin in the leg at a birthday party in July 2020, after an altercation broke out over an allegedly stolen necklace.
The court explained that it had “taken into account the fact that the suspect was a professional player and a public figure when making an exemplary decision.” It also “criticised him for failing to take responsibility.”
The prosecutor, who had called for two years’ imprisonment last year, had had to rule out attempted murder for lack of evidence. The investigation was triggered by phone taps in a separate drug trafficking case that also involved Promes.
The striker has also been on trial since May for importing several hundred kilos of cocaine, notably via the Belgian port of Antwerp.
Promes, who scored seven goals in 50 appearances for the Oranje, played in the Euro in 2021 with his national team, but has not been recalled since. The striker, who broke through at Twente before a first stint at Spartak Moscow (2014-2018), joined Ajax in 2019 from Sevilla. He was playing in Amsterdam at the time.
Due to his legal setbacks, he returned in 2021 to Russia, where he had been named player of the year in 2017.
