The main suspect in a tram shooting will be charged with multiple murders with terrorist intent, prosecutors have said. The man is thought to have acted alone in the shooting that left three people dead in Utrecht.
Image: Reuters/P. van de Wouw
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Gokmen T. will have to answer to charges of multiple murders with terrorist intent in a gun attack on a packed Utrecht tram, Dutch prosecutors said on Thursday.
The 37-year-old was also to be charged with attempted murder or manslaughter and making threats with terrorist intent, they said in a statement.
The statement said they were still looking into whether T. "acted out of a single terrorist motive or from personal problems combined with a radicalized ideology."
The suspect was arrested after an eight-hour manhunt that virtually shut down the Netherlands' fourth-largest city and saw security stepped up at airports and key sites across the country.
T. is due to face a judge on Friday behind closed doors before his next hearing in two weeks.
ta/sms (AP, AFP, dpa)
Shooting in Dutch city of Utrecht
A gunman has opened fire in a tram in the Dutch city of Utrecht, with three people killed and seven injured in the shooting. The incident is being treated as a possible terrorist crime.
Image: Reuters/P. van de Wouw
Shooting on a tram
The shooting in Utrecht took place on a tram at around 10.45 a.m. (0945 UTC) in a residential neighborhood. Three people were killed in the attack.
Image: Reuters/P. van de Wouw
Fast deployment
Counterterrorism forces were quickly deployed to the scene at Utrecht's 24 Oktoberplein junction. Police are treating the incident as a possible case of terrorism.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/R. V. Lonkhuijsen
Several injured
The police said on Twitter that "multiple people have been injured." Ambulances arrived rapidly to transport them to hospital. Later, authorities said five people had been wounded.
Image: Reuters/P. van de Wouw
Manhunt for the attacker
The gunman escaped the scene of the crime and police have been trying to find him. Schools were told to keep their doors closed while the search was going on.
Image: Reuters/P. van de Wouw
Mounted police in action
Dutch police even deployed mounted forces as they tried to ensure public safety following the attack. The public has been warned to stay indoors.
Image: Reuters/P. van de Wouw
Suspect's photo published
Utrecht police published a photo of the suspected attacker caught by surveillance video. The named the man as Gökmen Tanis, a 37-year-old born in Turkey. They asked the public not to approach him and to call the authorities if they see him.
Image: Reuters/Utrecht Police
PM: We will never give in
Speaking at a press conference, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said "our democracy is stronger than fantacism and violence. We will never give in to intolerence."
