Detainee sets cell on fire at Meppel police station

A detainee set a matrass on fire in his cell at a police station in Meppel on Thursday afternoon. The smoke set off the fire alarm and police officers had to leave the station on Eendrachtsraat. When the fire brigade arrived, the fire was already extinguished, Dagblad van het Noorden reports.

The fire starter was arrested earlier on Thursday for theft. According to the police, he was searched multiple times before being put in the cell, but still managed to smuggle a lighter in by hiding it in one of his body cavities. The suspect was transferred to the detention center in Assen.

The suspect wasn't hurt in the fire. A police officer was taken to hospital for a check up due to smoke inhalation.