FBI Calls 24-Year-Old Suspect a Shinyhunters Leader as Dutch Police Find Alleged Murder Plot on His Laptop

Dutch police say a 24-year-old Amsterdam man they arrested is suspected of ordering two murders abroad, after investigators allegedly found detailed plans on his laptop. At the same time, FBI Director Kash Patel has described the man as one of the alleged leaders of the prolific hacking group ShinyHunters.

Dutch police said the man was arrested on 15 September and is suspected of playing a role in the hacking group. They also suspect him of attempted solicitation of two murders based on information found on his laptop. Police stressed that the murder investigation is separate from the ShinyHunters inquiry.

Rotterdam Court Orders 90 More Days in Detention

A Rotterdam court has ordered the suspect to remain in custody for another 90 days, according to the Associated Press. Dutch police said several data storage devices were seized during the operation and are being examined. Investigators have not ruled out further arrests.

Police have not publicly named the suspect. Reuters reported that Amsterdam-based cybersecurity company Neo Security identified him as Pepijn van der Stap, its offensive security lead.

Van der Stap was convicted in 2023 of data theft and extortion and sentenced to four years in prison, according to Reuters. He was released in December 2025 and subsequently worked in cybersecurity, including at Neo Security.

Neo Security chief executive Benjamin Korper told Reuters that an outside firm investigated whether Van der Stap had hacked the company or its customers and found no evidence that he had done so.

Police Say Laptop Contained Murder Details

The murder allegations emerged from material found on the seized laptop, according to Dutch police. Authorities said the device contained information about two murders that were to be committed abroad.

Police also said there were indications that the suspect had ordered the killings, leading to the suspicion of attempted solicitation of two murders. Dutch authorities have not disclosed the alleged targets or the country where the killings were supposed to take place. Reuters reported that it remained unclear whether either murder actually occurred.

ShinyHunters Claimed FBI Hack After Arrest

The suspect was already in Dutch custody when ShinyHunters publicly claimed it had breached FBIJobs.gov on 22 September. The group claimed it had obtained sensitive information relating to FBI employees and job applicants. The FBI said it was investigating the claims, but the full scope and source of the alleged intrusion had not been confirmed.

The arrest came as Dutch investigators were also pursuing the group over earlier data theft and extortion cases. In February, ShinyHunters claimed responsibility for the theft of data belonging to more than six million customers of Dutch telecoms provider Odido.

Dutch police said the attackers gained access after a Dutch-speaking man posed as an Odido IT employee and persuaded a staff member to enter credentials into a spoofed login page.

FBI Cyber Division Assistant Director Brett Leatherman said the bureau was working with Dutch authorities and issued a direct warning to the hackers after the FBIJobs.gov claim, saying investigators knew how to find them.

Patel separately identified the Dutch suspect as one of ShinyHunters' alleged leaders, while Dutch police have described him only as someone suspected of playing a role in the group.

ShinyHunters has denied that Van der Stap was affiliated with the group, saying he had no association with it. The denial comes as Dutch investigators continue examining the devices seized during the 15 September operation.