Man in camouflage arrested with grenade in his car

Residents of Schiebroekstraat in Zoetermeer were startled Saturday morning by a man in camouflage clothing banging on windows and doors and shouting. Police arrested him and subsequently found a rifle grenade in his car, Omroep West reports.

Police urged residents to keep their doors and windows closed and to stay inside. The street was cordoned off for over an hour due to the suspected explosive device.

Residents of the building the man was knocking on believe that he was trying to communicate with people who no longer live there. The multicultural street mainly comprises rental houses, hairdressers and a healthcare facility.

“This makes an impression,” a hairdresser who also lives on the street told Omroep West. “It's tough to get it so close. Sometimes things happen here, but not such shocking things.”

Ovd klus in #Zoetermeer… https://t.co/KmJpN279yT pic.twitter.com/qXckZAFAJd

— Politie_OE_Hoek (@Politie_OE_Hoek) March 19, 2022

The Explosive Ordnance Disposal Service (EOD) transported the rifle grenade to Noord Aa, where it was safely detonated.  As the name suggests, rifle grenades are usually fired from rifles and differ from hand grenades in that they can be fired and explode 50 meters away, general weapons expert Arthur Dorst told Omroep West.