Suspect in Fatal Netherlands Tram Attack Arrested
Written by SOURCE on March 18, 2019
Central Netherlands Police have arrested a man suspected of fatally shooting multiple people on a tram in Utrecht Monday.
The attack occurred around 10:45 a.m. local time and resulted in the province raising its threat level to 5, the highest on the regional scale. Per CNN, a manhunt ensued, with the level being lowered to a 4 following the arrest. The arrested suspect is identified in a separate BBC report as 37-year-old Gokmen Tanis. In a tweet confirming the arrest, police did not give a name but said they had earlier “published information and a photo of this same person.” He is also said to have been previously known to local authorities.
Three people were killed in the attack, which also resulted in multiple injuries. While police haven’t ruled out a possible terrorism motive in their investigations, NPR notes that there are also reports alleging a “family dispute.” Of those wounded, three are said to have sustained serious injuries.
“There was an attack today in the Netherlands,” Prime Minister Mark Rutte said in a press conference alongside police. “If it had terror motives, that is being investigated. But it was very serious. The world shares our grief.”
At the time of this writing, additional details on the arrest had not been released.
