Belgian minor tries to order gun online for shootout at school

A minor in Belgium appeared before a judge on Monday after trying to buy a weapon by email from the United States with the intention of killing as many people as possible in a school, Het Nieuwsblad and Gazet van Antwerpen newspapers reported on Tuesday. His email was intercepted by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), which alerted the Belgian police. The teenager was arrested on Monday, the newspapers reported.

In his email, sent to a U.S. company, the minor wrote that he wanted something to make as many victims as possible, implying that he was looking for a bomb or a firearm. He wrote explicitly that his aim was to carry out a mass shooting at a school. The police supposed that his target was a school in Brugge (Bruges) since there was a reference to that city in the email.

Schools in Brugge, which organised their annual festival last weekend, were monitored by police patrols since, although the young man had been unable to order his weapon on the Internet, he may have had other options. However, this turned out not to be the case.

On Monday, the police were able to pick up the teenager, who reportedly lived in Dondermonde. The spokesperson for the public prosecutor’s office, Sarah De Meyer, confirmed that he appeared before an investigating judge. Apparently, the suspect had wanted to make a bad joke.


The Brussels Times


Copyright © 2024 The Brussels Times. All Rights Reserved.