Ede hostage-taking: Suspect was known to the judiciary; evacuated residents can return home

The suspect arrested for the hostage-taking in a café in Ede is known to the judiciary. Marthyne Kunst, chief public prosecutor in the eastern Netherlands, said this in a scheduled press conference. The suspected hostage-taker has previously been convicted of threatening. That was last year, according to Kunst, who did not provide any further information about the nature of that threat.

Overall, nothing is yet known about the motive for the hostage-taking. The police do not consider that the incident in Ede had a terrorist motive, Anne Jan Oosterheert of the East Netherlands police said during the press conference.

The police received the first report of a "possible hostage situation" in Café Petticoat in Ede on Saturday morning around 5:15 a.m. According to Oosterheert, the police arrived on the scene within two minutes and it was immediately clear that the situation was "very serious". The suspect held four people hostage at the Petticoat café on Saturday morning. The victims are employees of the café in the center of Ede. The police have scaled up as much as possible and also called in special units.

The suspected hostage-taker is in any case suspected of unlawful deprivation of liberty, said chief prosecutor Kunst. Whether further suspicions arise remains to be seen from the investigation.

The suspect was arrested quietly, according to Kunst. He was carrying a backpack that was examined for possible explosives. However, no explosives have been found in the backpack of the hostage suspect in Ede, a police spokesperson confirms after a report from RTL News.

Nothing is yet known about the motive for the hostage-taking. It is also unclear whether the hostage-taker knew one or more of the victims. The suspect was not injured during the police action.

The center of the Gelderland town will be released again as soon as possible. The evacuated residents of approximately 150 homes can return home "within an hour," a municipal spokesperson said. The cafe where the hostage-taking took place and the immediate surroundings, however, are still closed for investigation.

Rutte and Yeşilgöz thanked for successful police operation

On social media, outgoing Prime Minister Mark Rutte expressed "great respect and appreciation" for the police, the emergency services and the special task force, who "managed to bring the hostage-taking in Ede to a successful conclusion on Saturday morning". Four people had been taken hostage in a café in the town in Gelderland.

Also Minister of Justice Dilan Yeşilgöz shared "compliments for the strict and quick action of the police, DSI, fire brigade and other emergency services, thanks to them the situation was quickly made safe," on X.

The VVD leader wished strength "everyone who was present during the hostage situation in #Ede and to local residents and entrepreneurs in the area who had to leave their homes or shops".

Ede Mayor René Verhulst also stated his gratefulness to the police units and emergency services in a statement and wished the victims a lot of strength. "I am extremely relieved that the hostage situation at Café Pettycoat has come to a successful end. Thanks to the quick and good action of all emergency services, all four hostages were able to leave the building unharmed. Everything that happened today will have a tremendous impact on the victims. I would like to wish them and their families a lot of strength and support in the coming period to deal with all of this. Where we can, we will support them. The area, except for the café itself, has just been reopened by the police, which means local residents can return home and shops and restaurants in the area can open again."