The Hague stabbings: Homeless man arrested after three teens injured
The victims were not known to each other and have been identified as two 15-year-old girls and a 13-year-old boy.
Sunday 1 December 2019 00:06, UK
A 35-year-old homeless man has been arrested on suspicion of stabbing three teenagers on a busy shopping street in The Hague.
Dutch police detained the unidentified man early on Saturday evening, according to a police spokesperson.
The victims, who did not know each other, were two 15-year-old girls and a 13-year-old boy.
They were treated in hospital following the attack at around 7.45pm local time on Friday and released later that evening.
The arrest came after authorities launched a manhunt which they said involved "using all our available means - visible and unseen - to find the suspect", including combing through video surveillance footage.
The area was cordoned off overnight.
Police say the motive for the stabbing remains unclear, but they are keeping an open mind.
The attack happened in The Hague's main market square, which was busy with Black Friday shoppers and close to the city's most popular nightlife.
Footage posted on social media show panicked shoppers running away from the scene.
According to broadcaster NOS, the two girls who had been stabbed on the street ran into a nearby department store.
A witness also said he had seen the suspect fleeing the scene and jumping over benches to get away.
"People were still trying to hold him but that didn't work. I was shocked," he said.
The Hague's acting mayor, Boudewijn Revis, said she was horrified by the attack.