Five people have been arrested by the Brussels police in association with the bomb blast that hit the criminology institute on Monday morning. Officials say that fire may have been started to destroy forensic evidence at the laboratory. No casualties were reported in the incident.
The explosion was heard before 02:30 local time. A car entered the institute's parking area and the suspects present inside detonated a bomb near the criminology laboratory, BBC reported.
Fire service spokesman Pierre Meys said that the "extremely powerful" blast was likely "not accidental," Agence France-Presse reported. The fire caused by the explosion was put out by about 30 firefighters.
Belgium is on high alert because of the recent terrorist attacks on the city's airport and metro. The bomb blasts at the airport in March were claimed by the Islamic State (Isis) and led to a loss of 32 lives.
The criminology institute is situated in Neder-Over-Hembeek, north of Brussels. It is not yet certain what happened to the suspects, however, Brussels media has reported "significant damage."
The institute carries out scientific analysis associated with criminal cases.
