Motive behind arson that killed six in The Hague may involve soured relationship, SUV sale
Newspaper reports published on Wednesday morning suggest that a dispute between two people in a prior relationship, possibly involving a sport utility vehicle, may have been the motive behind the fatal explosions and fire at an apartment complex in The Hague earlier this month. The incident left six people dead and four others injured at Tarwekamp on December 7. Five two-story homes and several commercial properties on the ground floor were completely destroyed, including a bridal fashion shop which police previously identified as the likely target.
The woman who owns the bridal shop may have been involved in an ongoing argument with 33-year-old Moshtag B., the suspect arrested at his home in Rotterdam early last week, the Volkskrant reported on Wednesday. Another newspaper, AD, cited police sources who speculate that the motive was linked to the former personal relationship between the two entrepreneurs. Investigators are looking into whether B. was looking to cause his former partner financial distress by commissioning the destruction of the vehicle and a fire to damage her store.
She unsuccessfully tried to sell a white Range Rover using Facebook Marketplace in October 2023, and then again on the same platform starting on November 27, the newspaper said. But earlier in November, B. also listed the same vehicle on Dutch classified advertising website Marktplaats. The two listings in November used identical photos, the newspaper found. The vehicle was fully destroyed during the incident at Tarwekamp.
Moshtag B., originally from Afghanistan, grew up in Roosendaal, Noord-Brabant, a short drive from his current home in Rotterdam. He has been involved as an owner or co-owner of five businesses over the years, including a gas station in Rotterdam, while also studying to become an optician, the Volkskrant reported.
Two of the other suspects arrested in the case also come from Roosendaal, and were briefly detained under suspicion of planning an explosion. They are believed to be the same two individuals authorities stopped at the Zuiderhout shopping center parking lot in Oosterhout on November 29, two days after the Range Rover was listed online by the bridal shop owner. They are reportedly cousins named Mourad, age 29, and Ilyas, age 23.
A search of their van turned up jerry cans and explosives. They were questioned, but were not remanded into custody. Their case was transferred district prosecutors working in the western portion of Noord-Brabant to prosecutors handling the Tarwekamp incident in The Hague.
Moshtag B. and the two men from Roosendaal were arrested the Monday following the Tarwekamp explosion. A fourth man was arrested two days later at his home in Oosterhout, the same municipality where the van was searched in a parking lot. He was identified as a 33-year-old named Adil, who is said to live in walking distance from the shopping center.
During the initial research into the explosions and fire at Tarwekamp, investigators were seen examining at least one jerry can. About the same time, it emerged that police had ruled out the possibility of a drug lab explosion similar to what caused a violent incident that left several people dead in Rotterdam in January. At the same time, investigators made it clear that they believed it was a case of foul play, with arson the likely cause of the explosions and fire.
B.'s attorney, Gerard Spong, confirmed the arrest and his client's identity to the Volkskrant. Earlier, he told reporters that his client was charged with a life-threatening arson. At the remand hearing for the four suspects, prosecutors also confirmed that the men were also charged with planning to commit another arson.
It was not immediately clear if this was related to the arrest which took place on November 29. Neither Spong nor the Public Prosecution Service would comment when asked by the Volkskrant. B.'s business parter at the gas station told the newspaper he was not aware of the arrest, and expressed shock at the possibility the man was involved in the Tarwekamp incident.
Under the Dutch Criminal Code, an individual convicted of such a charge can face a maximum prison term of 30 years, or in some cases life in prison with a chance of parole after 25 years. The caveat is if judges believe the suspect should have known that the specific circumstance involving the intentional detonation of an explosion or setting of a fire could have resulted in a loss of life.
The four suspects were ordered to remain in jail for at least two weeks by the examining magistrate presiding over their initial hearing. They were being kept in restricted custody, meaning they can only communicate with their legal representation, and which also generally leads to attorneys on both sides limiting their public statements in a case.
Prosecutors will present more about the case during an arraignment hearing set for December 24. The three-judge panel at a district court can then extend pre-trial detention by up to 90 days at a time.
