Dutch underworld figure Willem Holleeder has been jailed for 46 days for threatening Dutch television crime reporter Peter R de Vries.

However, judges in Haarlem found him not guilty of blackmailing a former chief of motorbike gang Hells Angels.

Holleeder, who was jailed in the 1980s for kidnapping beer magnate Freddie Heineken, will also have to spend a further 90 days in jail for breaking the terms of his early release from prison by threatening De Vries.

He was released in 2012 after serving five years for blackmailing three property tycoons.

The public prosecution department had called for a 1.5 year jail term for the threats and blackmail, plus three years for breaking his early release provisions.

Telegraaf reporter Johan van den Heuvel said although Holleeder has quite a reputation, the court has stuck to the facts in this case. ‘You cannot be sentenced on the basis of your reputation,’ he said.

Holleeder was arrested almost three months ago in connection with yet another case. That investigation centres on the murder of underworld figures Kees Houtman and Thomas van der Bijl in 2005 and 2006. That trial is not expected to begin before the autumn.