NOS News•today, 09:37•Amended today, 1:44 PM
In the search for an aggressive man who walked into De Coppele primary school in Oisterwijk this morning, the police have arrested a suspect.
The man was arrested in Oisterwijk, a police spokesperson told the NOS, but where exactly is not disclosed. “But the tension is out of the village.” The police are not making any further statements about the suspect. “We now know who he is, but in order not to frustrate the investigation, we will leave it in the middle. Perhaps it will be released at a later time,” says the spokesperson.
Whether the man was armed when he walked into the school is still under investigation. Traces are being investigated at the school, but nothing was found that he could have left behind, the police spokesperson said. The Central and West Brabant safety region already reported that no explosive was found in the primary school. The municipality of Oisterwijk had reported that the man may have left an explosive behind.
Threatening language
This morning at 8 a.m. a man entered the school and used threatening language. The teachers then called 911 and the school was evacuated.
Unrest about man in Oisterwijk school
The students and teachers were brought to safety in a nearby swimming pool. A mother explains how children also went to other parents in the neighborhood: “The parents had organized via a WhatsApp group that the children were cared for in the neighborhood.”
The suspect was not found in the school, but someone matching the man’s description was seen in the vicinity of the school. It was a possibly confused man, 30 years old, slightly tanned, 1.80 metres, slim, with a beard and shaved hair with curls on top, the police reported. https://twitter.com/POL_Tilburg/status/1724359227450306838 .
The police were present with many units to arrest the man, including arrest teams from the Special Interventions Service.
Other schools
The nearby St. Caecilia primary school in Berkel-Enschot kept its doors closed to be on the safe side. Children were unable to play outside for a while, but according to the school there was no threatening atmosphere.
