So far, the Public Prosecution Service has received 37 reports following the devastating explosion at Tarwekamp on December 7. Some reports are still pending. This includes affected residents, relatives, neighbors, and legal entities. Today, the Public Prosecution Service decided to lift the restrictions on the four suspects.
On Saturday, December 7, 2024, around 6:15 AM, an explosion and arson occurred at Tarwekamp in The Hague. Several houses collapsed due to the explosion. Six people lost their lives, and four were hospitalized with injuries. Homes and businesses around the directly affected block suffered severe damage.
The investigation into the cause of the explosion led to four arrests in the following days: a 33-year-old man from Rotterdam, a 29-year-old man, and a 23-year-old man from Roosendaal, as well as a 33-year-old man from Oosterhout.
Until today, they were held under restrictions for the sake of the investigation, meaning they could not contact the outside world, and the Public Prosecution Service could not provide substantive information about the case. Now that the restrictions have been lifted, the Public Prosecution Service can share more information, keeping in mind that the investigation is ongoing and that the judge must ultimately make a ruling during a substantive session.
Preparation
The four arrested men are suspected of involvement in the explosion on December 7 in The Hague, arson in a car that same morning, and preparatory acts for a crime on December 1. The Public Prosecution Service suspects that the suspects intended to commit arson or cause an explosion that night. This plan likely did not go through because the intended perpetrators were arrested by the police.
The two suspects from Roosendaal were checked by the police on December 1 while they were suspiciously lingering in a van in a parking lot in Oosterhout. In the back of the van, police found heavy fireworks and gasoline cans, leading to their arrest on suspicion of preparatory acts for arson. The items have been seized, along with the van and discovered phones. After interrogation, the suspects were released pending the investigation outcomes regarding the phones.
It has now become clear according to the Public Prosecution Service that the suspects likely intended to commit arson or cause an explosion at the bridal shop on Tarwekamp that night.
Division of Roles
The initiative appears to have come from the 33-year-old suspect from Rotterdam. He personally knew the owner of the bridal shop targeted in the attack.
The two men from Roosendaal and the man from Oosterhout were approached to assist the man from Rotterdam in preparing and executing the arson and explosion.
Victims
The explosion in the early morning of December 7 resulted in fatalities, injuries, and unimaginable devastation. Among the victims who have filed reports are directly affected residents and relatives, as well as neighbors who were startled by the blast and confronted with the dramatic consequences that night, or neighbors and shopkeepers who suffered direct material damage.
The Public Prosecution Service is currently processing all reports. In the short term, the claimants will receive a letter with more information about the further proceedings.
The suspects are scheduled to appear in court for the first time on March 14; this will be a so-called pro forma hearing.