The minister has been placed under increased police protection while four suspects have been arrested in the Netherlands.
Four suspects were arrested over the weekend in the Netherlands as part of an investigation into the attempted kidnapping of Belgian Justice Minister Vincent van Kickenborn, who blamed “the drug mafia”.
The minister, who is also the mayor of Courtrai, addressed the residents of this West Flanders city on Saturday night during a celebration with his video message that was broadcast yesterday Sunday by the state radio and television network RTBF.
Van Kikenborn said he received a phone call from federal prosecutor Frederik Fav Leuw on Thursday. “He warned me about a plan to kidnap me,” he explained, while adding that he did not want to cancel the festivities in his city in order “not to succumb to the drug mafia.”
On Saturday, Belgium’s federal prosecutor’s office announced that the minister had been placed under increased police protection and that three suspects had been arrested in the Netherlands. The Dutch prosecutor’s office clarified that they are three men aged 20, 29 and 48, with Dutch citizenship.
A fourth suspect was also arrested in the Netherlands, according to a judicial source.
Belgium has requested their extradition.
The judicial source confirmed that an automatic weapon was found in a vehicle found near the minister’s residence in Kurtrai.
Flemish newspaper Het Laatste Nieuws reported that firearms, including Kalashnikovs, and bottles filled with gasoline were found in the suspect’s car, which had a Dutch license plate.
Van Kikenborn responded by posting on social media on Saturday that he was determined to continue his fight against “organized crime”. “We will never succumb to violence,” he stressed.
Belgian Prime Minister Alexandre de Croix denounced “a completely unacceptable threat”. “We will not allow anyone to intimidate us,” he added.
The Belgian federal prosecutor’s office explained on Saturday that “during the past week it was informed of a possible threat” against the justice minister. Research “quickly concluded that this threat is serious,” he added.
Van Kikenborn was placed under increased police protection and canceled some of his obligations. The prosecutor’s office did not provide any other details about the investigation.
RES-EMP
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