The True Story That Inspired Netflix’s ‘iHostage’

When a gunman takes over an Apple Store, both the police and the hostages must think fast to keep everyone alive.

That’s the premise of “iHostage,” a new thriller that became the No. 1 movie on Netflix since it premiered last week on April 18, and is No. 3 as of the publication of this article.

The movie is closely based on the true story of a hostage crisis that unfolded at an Apple Store in central Amsterdam on Feb. 22, 2022, when an armed assailant held a man at gunpoint for hours as he demanded a large ransom in cryptocurrency.

Director Bobby Boermans lives near the Apple Store where the incident took place, which inspired him to look into the story further. He was particularly struck by the “symbolic weight of the setting itself,” he said in a recent Time magazine interview.

“A global brand like Apple, known for its clean, peaceful spaces,” he said. “A place of sleek design and calm … it became the scene of something truly horrifying inside and out.”

While “iHostage” is closely inspired by the real events of that February night, Boermans says he took a few liberties. 

“We changed the dialogue and gave all characters fictional names so they couldn’t be traced back to the individuals involved,” he told Time. “In reality, hundreds of people were involved in the stand-off, but we focused on five main characters — each from a different background, each offering a unique perspective.”

Keep reading to learn more about the real-life hostage crisis that inspired the Netflix thriller.

What happened in the real-life hostage situation?

In the late afternoon of Feb. 22, 2022, police received reports of a possible robbery at an Apple Store in the Leidseplein area of central Amsterdam, according to a statement from Amsterdam police obtained by TODAY.com.

When officers arrived on the scene, they were “immediately fired upon,” Amsterdam police said.

Police sealed off the area and discovered that the suspect was a 27-year-old man from Amsterdam with an automatic weapon and a handgun. Authorities also said they believed at the time the suspect might be wearing a bomb vest.

Many people in the Apple Store were allowed to leave the area, with police rescuing about 70 people who had been in the building. Four other people hid in a closet in the store throughout the ordeal, police said.

The suspect took one man hostage inside the Apple store, holding him at gunpoint.

The suspect then contacted police himself and demanded a ransom of 200 million Euros, or more than $220 million dollars, in cryptocurrency, as well as a “safe passage from the property,” according to the police statement.

At 10:30 p.m., about five hours after the crisis began, the suspect asked for water. A police robot delivered water to the door of the store, Amsterdam police chief Frank Pauw said in a statement seen by TODAY.com.

The hostage stepped outside as if to fetch the water, but then made a run for it, police said in a statement to reporters.

The suspect gave chase, but was quickly stopped when a member of the Dutch Special Intervention Service, which is similar to a SWAT unit in the U.S., hit him with a car. 

“We managed to stop the hostage-taker by hitting him as he ran out. Violent images of that collision can be seen,” Amsterdam police wrote in a social media post in Dutch, which was translated by NBC News. 

The police also said on social media that the suspect had no explosives on his body, and said he was being cared for by medical professionals.

What happened to the hostages?

No one apart from the hostage taker was hurt in the incident. 

The main hostage, as well as the four people who were trapped in a closet throughout the crisis and the 70 people initially rescued by police, were all removed from the building unharmed, authorities said. 

“This does not change the fact that the incident had a major impact,” police said in a statement obtained by TODAY.com. “Everyone was taken to a sanctuary/victim care center, where witness statements were recorded and Victim Care took care of those involved.”

The real-life hostage was a Bulgarian man whose name has not been shared by authorities. In “iHostage,” his name is Ilian Petrov, and he is played by Bosnian actor Admir Šehović. 

Apple later issued a statement about the incident.

“We are so incredibly grateful and relieved that our employees and customers in Amsterdam are safe after this terrifying experience,” the company said in a statement to NBC News at the time.

The company also praised the “swift action” of its employees and customers and thanked those involved for “the support and care they’ve shown each other under such challenging circumstances.”

What happened to the gunman?

After being struck by the police vehicle, the hostage taker subsequently died of his injuries, authorities confirmed.

Police identified the hostage taker as Dutch national Abdel Rahman Akkad, according to Dutch newspaper Het Parool. 

In the Netflix movie, the gunman’s name is Ammar Ajar, and he is portrayed by Dutch actor Soufiane Moussouli.

Akkad had been known to authorities, and had already faced multiple convictions, including for possession of weapons, Het Parool reported. He had also recently been acquitted of threatening his girlfriend with death or serious assault, the newspaper reported.

Akkad wore a bodycam throughout the hostage taking incident, and some of that footage was included in a 2024 Dutch documentary about the hostage crisis, “De Gijzeling In De Apple Store.”

Following the hostage crisis, Dutch authorities launched an investigation into the handling of the incident, namely the Special Intervention Service officer’s decision to hit Akkar with a car to stop his escape.

The Netherlands’ Public Prosecution Service later determined that the driver of the car would not be prosecuted and said his actions had been appropriate given the situation, Het Parool reported in June 2022.