All About the Real-Life Incident in an Apple Store ArticlePure

Netflix’s iHostage tells the frightening true story of a gunman who held a man hostage inside an Apple store in Amsterdam.

In the thriller, people hid for hours throughout the store as the gunman demanded 200 million euros in cryptocurrency and a free exit. By the end of the movie, police ended the crisis in a rather unconventional way, but all of the hostages managed to survive, echoing the real-life events the film is based on.

Director Bobby Boermans lives near the actual Apple store where the crime took place and was inspired by the peculiar nature of the events. During an April 2025 conversation with TIME, he shared that he was particularly struck by the remaining bullet holes, which were the only sign that something had even taken place at the store.

“That weird juxtaposition stayed with me. The surreal calm after the storm. It made me ask: what happened during those five terrifying hours?” he said. “It’s nothing short of a miracle that all the hostages survived.”

Here’s everything to know about the real-life events that inspired Netflix’s iHostage.

Is iHostage based on a true story?

Yes, iHostage is based on a real-life incident that occurred in 2022 in Amsterdam.

Though Boermans followed the timeline of events closely, the director told TIME that he took some creative liberties when creating the movie.

“While working on the script, we consciously focused solely on the night of the hostage situation,” he said. “Of course, you have to condense time in any film, but most of the story beats you see on screen are based on things that actually happened.”

“In reality, hundreds of people were involved in the stand-off, but we focused on five main characters,” he said, adding that they all offered a “unique perspective.”

The director also shared that he hoped the film would showcase “our capacity to support each other, even in the most challenging times,” while also being a “captivating thriller” that keeps viewers “on the edge of [their] seat[s].”

“I want the audience to experience both the intensity and the heart,” Boermans added.

What happened in the hostage situation at the Amsterdam Apple store?

On Feb. 22, 2022, a 27-year-old man entered an Apple store in Leidseplein, Amsterdam, and held a customer at gunpoint for several hours while he demanded 200 million euros in cryptocurrency, per BBC.

According to the outlet, dozens of people managed to exit the shop, while four hid in a cupboard. As the gunman held a 44-year-old Bulgarian man hostage, he sent photos to the local press that appeared to show his firearm and explosives strapped to his body.

Police arrived at the scene quickly, and at least four shots were fired at them by the gunman, per TIME. As they suspected he was carrying explosives, the surrounding areas were all ordered to shelter in place, where many of them would stay for the next few hours.

Boermans told TIME that “hostage situations like this” were not a common occurrence in the Netherlands, which added to the intriguing nature of the event.

“That’s what made this incident bizarre,” he said. “A man, demanding 200 million in cryptocurrency, chose to take a hostage in broad daylight on one of the busiest squares in Amsterdam.”

What happened to the perpetrator?

As they did in the movie, police were able to catch the gunman, though it didn’t end in a conventional way.

According to TIME, the real-life perpetrator asked for water around 10:30 p.m., after several hours of negotiating with police.

The hostage walked toward the entrance of the store to retrieve the water bottle — which police sent via a robot — and seized the opportunity to flee the scene.

As the gunman followed after him, a special police unit vehicle sped up and ran into the suspect, who then fell unconscious. While he survived and was taken to a nearby hospital, officials confirmed he had died from injuries one day later.

Meanwhile, a video of him lying unconscious after being struck by the car began spreading online, which sparked an “intense public debate” in the Netherlands, Boermans told TIME.

The director said that the “entire country” began discussing it, specifically the unconventional way the police ended the crisis.

“Some people applauded the action, while others were more hesitant or conflicted about how it was handled,” Boermans told the outlet.

As the end credits of iHostage revealed, there was a four-month investigation that ended with the public prosecutor determining that the DSI (Department of Special Investigation) operator acted lawfully when causing the collision and would not be prosecuted.

Is Ilian Petrov a real person?

In the film, the man held hostage is named Ilian Petrov. He had been at the Apple store to pick up a new pair of AirPods after losing his earlier that morning. But as Boermans told TIME, the film used fictional names for all of the characters so that “they couldn’t be traced back to the individual involved.”

While Petrov is not a real person, he is based on the Bulgarian man who was held hostage that day.

While little is known about where the man is today, Amsterdam police chief Frank Paauw said he played a “heroic role by forcing a breakthrough” in the stand-off, per BBC.

Who was the gunman?

The real-life gunman was identified as Abdel Rahman Akkad, according to the Amsterdam-based Dutch newspaper Het Parool, per TIME.

According to the outlet, Akkad was an Amsterdam resident who already had a criminal record and was known to social services.

Not only did he have a prior record of weapon possession, but Akkad reportedly received a sentence of 60 hours of community service, one month of conditional release and a three-year restraining order for harassing an ex-girlfriend, per Het Parool.

As the end credits revealed, his motives for the hostage situation remain undetermined.