The Brussels council chamber asked for Richard W., a 32 year old Slovakian national who was arrested on the 2nd of February, to be committed. This comes after the investigation into the bomb alert at the European Parliament, the Brussels Prosecutor’s office said on Wednesday. This confirmed information revealed by VRT. A gun and chain saw were found in the suspect’s car when he was arrested. Passersby reported Richard W. to police just before 7.30am on the 2nd of February, as was he was driving around the outskirts of the European Parliament and acting suspiciously. He claimed he wanted to meet the “European President”. Due to the increased threat level following the terrorist attacks, he was taken into custody and interrogated. According to the Brussels Prosecutor’s office, he was not aggressive during his interrogation.
W. had the keys to a car parked in the rue Montoyer in his possession. As police weren’t sure what his intentions were, they decided not to take any risks, and a security perimeter was set up. Several office buildings near the European Parliament were evacuated, and traffic was diverted.
An inspection by the army’s bomb squad found no explosives in the car, and the security perimeter was lifted. A gun and chainsaw were found in the car. Richard W. did not comment on them during his interrogation. He was placed under arrest and charged with threatening an attack, illegally holding a weapon and possessing a gun that requires a permit.
A psychiatric expert said the man wasn’t responsible for his actions, so the council chamber asked for him to be committed.
(Source: Belga)
