Gelderland man, 43, arrested for preparing terrorist attack

A 43-year-old man from Lingewaard in Gelderland is in custody on suspicion of preparing for a violent crime "with terrorist intent" aimed against Muslims, the Public Prosecutor said. The man was arrested on May 23rd, but the Prosecutor only announced his arrest on Wednesday, NU.nl reports.

The authorities started investigating the man after receiving information that the man thought that violence against Muslims is justified "and would take action to do so", the Prosecutor said. "There was also information that he might have access to a quantity of explosives."

The suspect's home was searched after his arrest. The police found a large number of bullets and confiscated them. The authorities are investigating the "facts and psychological state of the man".

At this stage there is no indication that the man actually had a concrete plan to commit an attack, the Prosecutor said. The state of the investigation will be discussed in a pro-forma hearing against the man in the court in Zutphen on September 7th.