A man has been arrested after he locked himself in the toilet of a Thalys train at Rotterdam, causing the vehicle to be evacuated. The Explosives Disposal Service is inspecting the train and the entire Rotterdam Central station has been closed off temporarily.
Dutch police reported that the young man acted suspiciously and sprinted towards the Thalys, jumping on the train seconds before the scheduled departure, after which he locked himself in the trains toilet.
After two hours, the police managed to get him out of the toilet. At this time, the entire station had been evacuated, including surrounding shops. The man started hyperventilating and has been taken away by an ambulance to the nearest hospital, under supervision of several officers. The suspect will be taken to the police station shortly.
The Dutch police said the arrest went by smoothly, although one officer suffered minor injuries after a police dog bit him. One of the forces dogs has inspected the train for explosives but the police could not give any updates yet.
The arrest comes just weeks after a man seriously injured two people after opening fire on a Thalys train between Amsterdam and Paris. The suspect, a 25-year-old man, was overpowered by two American passengers.
