Maastricht City Councillor arrested on terrorism charge; Tied to Atlanta KLM incident
Police in Maastricht arrested a 32-year-old City Council member for threatening to drive onto a crowded shopping street with the intent to run people over. The suspect, who is from the Limburg city, is the same man who opened the emergency exit of a KLM aircraft in November as it was taxiing to the runway at Hartsfield-Jackson Airport in Atlanta, De Limburger reported.
The arrest on terrorism charges came after police seized chat messages in which he described intentionally targeting people in a shopping street with his vehicle, claiming he was “finished” with society. Aside from being a City Council member on behalf of right-wing political party VVD, he has also been working as a senior civil servant working for the province of Limburg.
On the VVD and the Council's website, the suspect goes by the name Jurgen van H. He has been struggling with psychological issues for some time, and has been on sick leave from his work, both the newspaper and regional broadcaster L1 reported. He went on leave from the province over a year ago.
Van H. was taken into custody on Jan. 7, but his arrest only emerged a week later. He was brought before an examining magistrate two days later, and was remanded to jail while the investigation continues. He is due to appear before a district court for an arraignment hearing on Jan. 22.
"He reported sick a while ago because he is not in good health. Jurgen was looking for a replacement on the City Council, but that hasn't happened yet," said local VVD leader Guiseppe Noteborn in a comment to L1.
A former top advisor to the provincial coalition government, Van H. was up for reelection for his City Council job when people go to the polls in March. The VVD will no longer include him on their candidate list when the ballots are printed.
He was reportedly the same person who was identified by law enforcement officers in Atlanta as Johannes van H., the 32-year-old who caused an emergency on KLM Flight 622 when it was set to depart for Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam on Nov. 25. In a panic, the Dutch man called 911 from inside the aircraft to report another passenger was carrying a firearm.
“Preliminary investigation indicates Van H. believed he saw another passenger with a weapon and appeared to have panicked, ultimately opening the emergency exit door and deploying the inflatable slide while the plane was taxiing,” the Atlanta Police Department said. A weapon was not found on the aircraft when it was searched.
Van H. was taken into custody, and was charged with reckless conduct, criminal damage to property, and interfering with security measures. The suspect “also appeared to be experiencing a mental health episode,” police said. He was taken to the Clayton County Jail, and was deported to the Netherlands soon after.
Van H.'s attorney did not respond to requests for comment from other media outlets. The Province of Limburg also refused to comment to De Limburger, calling the situation a "private matter."
