Maastricht train station evacuated on suspicious passenger

The central station in Maastricht was evacuated and closed down for several hours on Wednesday night due to a suspicious suitcase. It later turned out to be a false alarm.

Police officers noticed a man with a suitcase in the station hall around 10:30 p.m. Officers considered the situation suspicious and decided to evacuate the station and bring public transport to a halt as a precaution.

Train and bus traffic were stopped and everyone in the station was evacuated. A zone of 100 meters around the station was closed down. Oncoming trains had to stop outside this zone, where passengers could get off.

The officers called in a sniffer dog and an explosives expert to investigate the suitcase. The investigation showed that it contained nothing suspicious. There were no explosives in the suitcase or on the suspect.

The man was arrested for resisting the police officers. He was taken to the police station for questioning.

The train station was reopened around 00:30 a.m.