Charles Dickens' characters come alive in a Dutch town enamored with the English author

DEVENTER, Netherlands (AP) — The Dutch city of Deventer transformed Saturday into a pocket of 19th-century England, with 950 people in costumes bringing characters from Charles Dickens’ books to life.

Oliver Twist, Ebenezer Scrooge and Miss Havisham were among the characters at hand, mingling with chimney sweepers, livestock and Christmas carol singers in Deventer’s historic center. Onlookers bowed when Queen Victoria passed through.

Merchants peddle antiques and gingerbread, while people portraying pickpockets try to avoid being tossed in a mock Marshalsea Prison.

The town's link to Dickens is Emmy Strik, who started the weekend-long festival to protest rules against keeping her antique shop open on Sunday. Strik and other shopowners dressed up in the 19th-century England costumes and walked out on the streets. The protest evolved into an annual festival and Strik, now 84, has collected more than 1,000 Dickensian costumes for the event.

Organizers enforce the dress code strictly — no clothes or accessories from after the 1800s.

Sandra Nieland, playing the queen, described her costume to The Associated Press: “In her younger years, she was, of course, a beautiful queen. And in her older years, she was mourning her husband, Albert and, well, she was always in black and not (wearing) too much stuff. Just her rings. ... She always wore a lot of rings.”

It’s the 32nd edition of the festival, which attracts some 100,000 visitors each year from around the Netherlands and abroad, according to the town organizers. That means big crowds, who line up to enter the narrow streets.

Amateur street actor Stef Jongbloed reveled in the festive energy. In addition to specific characters, he said, “you also have so many people that just dress up just for fun and just walk around here the entire day. Also doing it together is what makes it so amazing.”

People in costumes from Charles Dickens' 19th-century English era sing, during a Dickens Festival, in Deventer, Netherlands, Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

People in costumes from Charles Dickens' 19th-century English era take part in a Dickens Festival, in Deventer, Netherlands, Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

People in costumes from Charles Dickens' 19th-century English era take part in a Dickens Festival, in Deventer, Netherlands, Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

Sandra Nieland dressed as Queen Victoria is photographed as people in costumes from Charles Dickens' 19th-century English era take part in a Dickens Festival, in Deventer, Netherlands, Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

People in costumes from Charles Dickens' 19th-century English era take part in a Dickens Festival, in Deventer, Netherlands, Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

A couple of spectators kiss under mistletoe during a Dickens Festival, in Deventer, Netherlands, Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

People in costumes from Charles Dickens' 19th-century English take part in a Dickens Festival, in Deventer, Netherlands, Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

People in costumes from Charles Dickens' 19th-century English era take part in a Dickens Festival, in Deventer, Netherlands, Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

People in costumes from Charles Dickens' 19th-century English era take part in a Dickens Festival, in Deventer, Netherlands, Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

Emmy Strik, left, who started the Deventer Dickens Day, and Sandra Nieland who plays Queen Victoria, are interviewed as people in costumes from Charles Dickens' 19th-century English era take part in a Dickens Festival, in Deventer, Netherlands, Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

People in costumes from Charles Dickens' 19th-century English era take part in a Dickens Festival, in Deventer, Netherlands, Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

Sandra Nieland plays Queen Victoria a people in costumes from Charles Dickens' 19th-century English era take part in a Dickens Festival, in Deventer, Netherlands, Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

People in costumes from Charles Dickens' 19th-century English era take part in a Dickens Festival, in Deventer, Netherlands, Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

People in costumes from Charles Dickens' 19th-century English era take part in a Dickens Festival, in Deventer, Netherlands, Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

NEW YORK (AP) — The suspect in the killing of UnitedHealthcare’s CEO has added a prominent defense lawyer to his legal team as Manhattan prosecutors work to return him from Pennsylvania to face a murder charge.

Luigi Mangione will be represented by Karen Friedman Agnifilo, who was a high-ranking deputy in the Manhattan district attorney’s office for years before entering private practice.

Friedman Agnifilo's law firm, Agnifilo Intrater LLP, confirmed in a statement late Friday that she had been retained to represent Mangione. The firm said she will not be commenting on the case at this time.

Mangione was arrested Monday after a customer at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania, saw him eating breakfast and noticed a resemblance to the person being sought by police in the Dec. 4 killing of Brian Thompson in Manhattan.

Police say Mangione was found with a gun, mask and writings linking him to the ambush outside the New York Hilton Midtown, where Thompson was arriving for his company's annual investor conference.

Mangione, 26, remained jailed without bail Saturday in Pennsylvania, where he was initially charged with gun and forgery offenses. Altoona is about 230 miles (about 370 kilometers) west of New York City.

Mangione's lawyer there, Thomas Dickey, has cautioned against prejudging the case and said that his client would contest his extradition to New York.

But Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said Friday that there were indications Mangione may now give up on that fight.

“We going to continue to press forward on parallel paths, and we'll be ready whether he is going to waive extradition or whether he is going to contest extradition,” Bragg said at an unrelated press conference in Times Square.

Hours after Mangione's arrest on Monday, Bragg's office filed paperwork charging him with five counts, including intentional murder, criminal possession of a weapon and criminal possession of a forged instrument.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has said she's prepared to ask her Pennsylvania counterpart, Gov. Josh Shapiro, to intervene and issue a governor's warrant requiring Mangione's extradition if he does not agree to be moved voluntarily.

Mangione’s new lawyer, Friedman Agnifilo, was the Chief Assistant District Attorney from 2014 to 2021 and was previously chief of the office's trial division. She has made frequent TV appearances, including as a CNN legal analyst, co-hosts a weekly podcast and is the legal adviser for “Law & Order.”

Her husband and law partner Mark Agnifilo is representing Sean “Diddy” Combs in the hip-hop mogul’s Manhattan federal sex trafficking case.

FILE - Assistant District Attorney Karen Agnifilo attends a news conference in Manhattan Supreme Court, in New York, Feb. 14, 2017. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, File)

This booking photo released Monday, Dec. 9, 2024, by the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections shows Luigi Mangione, a suspect in the fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. (Pennsylvania Department of Corrections via AP)

Suspect Luigi Mangione is taken into the Blair County Courthouse on Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2024, in Hollidaysburg, Pa. (Benjamin B. Braun/Pittsburgh Post-Gazette via AP)

Suspect Luigi Mangione is taken into the Blair County Courthouse on Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2024, in Hollidaysburg, Pa. (Janet Klingbeil via AP)

Suspect Luigi Mangione is taken into the Blair County Courthouse on Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2024, in Hollidaysburg, Pa. (Benjamin B. Braun/Pittsburgh Post-Gazette via AP)