Belgian Minister of Justice, Vincent van Quickenborne, says of the attempt to kidnap him that “everything points to it coming from the corner of the drug mafia”.
Van Quickenborne does not share details on the clues. “Investigations are still ongoing”. According to the minister, there is collaboration with the Dutch judiciary. It is still unclear whether the order for the seizure comes from the Netherlands.
On Saturday 24 September, three Dutchmen aged 20, 29 and 48 were arrested in The Hague and Leidschendam for the attempted kidnapping. The fourth suspect, a 21-year-old Dutchman, was arrested in The Hague on Sunday afternoon, 25 September.
Belgian police followed the suspects from Van Quickenborne’s home in Kortrijk to the Dutch border. They had left a car at home. According to Belgian media, an automatic rifle and petrol bottles were found in the car.
The minister himself reported in a video message that the Belgian authorities had foiled a kidnapping.
At the end of October, the International Legal Aid Chamber will decide whether the four suspects will be handed over to Belgium. They oppose.
