Attacker accused of terrorism over fatal stabbing at Erasmus Bridge in Rotterdam

The 22-year-old man alleged to have carried out a knife attack at the Erasmus Bridge in Rotterdam is suspected of wanting to perpetrate a terrorist attack, the Public Prosecution Service (OM) said on Friday. One victim was killed in the attack on Thursday night, another was wounded, and both the suspect and the bystander that captured him suffered minor injuries.

The alleged assailant, a 22-year-old man from Amersfoort, is currently under suspicion of “murder and attempted murder with a terrorist motive,” the OM stated. “The investigation conducted so far provides indications that the suspect may be ideologically driven. For example, the suspect shouted ‘Allahu Akbar’ several times during the commission of the acts.”

Police were sent to the bridge at about 8 p.m. after the attack was reported. They arrived to find a 32-year-old Rotterdam man and a 33-year-old from Switzerland injured at the scene.

Meanwhile, police found that several people had helped to overpower the alleged attacker. One of them was the 33-year-old from Switzerland who was hurt while detaining the suspect. Both he and the suspect were taken to a hospital for an evaluation. The Swiss man was released from care on Friday.

Afterwards, a personal trainer who helped tackle the suspect said the man was in possession of two carving knives or cleavers, and ran towards an event where dozens of people were present. About six people brought him down, including the trainer, Reniël.

In its update, prosecutors confirmed that the Amersfoort man was previously convicted of other violent crimes. While terrorism is the current suspicion, the OM said that other possible motives have not been ruled out.

While the investigation is ongoing, the suspect will be kept in restricted custody. He will not be allowed to communicate with anyone other than legal representation. Likewise, prosecutors are generally limited in details they are allowed to provide about suspects kept under closer guard.

The suspect will not be brought before an examining magistrate for an initial remand hearing until Monday. At that time, he can be ordered to remain in custody for a maximum of two weeks as the investigation continues.

Following that period, he will be arraigned at the District Court in The Hague, instead of in Rotterdam. The OM said several Rotterdam “court employees were among the witnesses to the stabbing,” and thus the case will be handled by judges in The Hague instead.