Dutch crime journalist Peter R. de Vries was gunned down and wounded in the center of Amsterdam late Tuesday, according to Dutch police.
De Vries, 64, was brought to the hospital with critical injuries. He was a regular guest on a live television show that was being shot near the RTL studios.
The attack was described as "shocking and inconceivable" by Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte.
"It's an attack on a courageous journalist and by extension an attack on the freedom of the press, which is so essential for our democracy and rule of law," Rutte said.
"We are praying that he will survive."
According to authorities, three people were arrested, including the possible gunman. They refused to disclose any information.
The shooting scene was sealed off by police near the downtown Leidseplein square. They were gathering evidence such as video footage, witness accounts and forensic evidence.
De Vries is a regular commentator on television crime shows and is known for his work in exposing the criminal underworld.
He received an international current affairs Emmy Award in 2008 for his work researching the 2005 disappearance of American teen Natalee Holloway on the Caribbean island of Aruba.
De Vries is famous for his investigation into the kidnapping of beer magnate Freddy Heineken in 1983. A novel he later wrote on the case was dramatized for the screen in the 2014 film "Kidnapping Freddy Heineken," starring Anthony Hopkins.
The journalist said on Twitter in 2019 that he had been warned by authorities that he was on the hit list of a fugitive criminal.
According to NOS, de Vries has lately acted as an adviser and confidant to a state witness testifying against an alleged drug kingpin who was extradited to the Netherlands from Dubai in 2019.
Late Tuesday, authorities declined to comment on whether de Vries had police protection.
