Passengers on local transport in Brussels saw two violent incidents yesterday. Around 6 o'clock on Tuesday morning, an unknown man pulled the emergency brake on a bus in Laken (City of Brussels). He then waved a fake weapon in the air. An hour and a half later, a second person threatened local transport security staff on the metro with a knife in the same district. Local transport company MIVB confirmed the two incidents to Brussels media outlet Bruzz.
A little before 6 o'clock, a bus passenger started waving a fake revolver around before fleeing the scene on foot. It happened at the Buissonnets stop in Laken. The suspect, who could not be stopped at the time, was later identified and arrested. He was handed over to the public prosecutor's office.
The transport company says the bus driver is in a state of shock and now at home on sick leave. MIVB spokeswoman An Van hamme: “All in all, it ended relatively well, but it is not pleasant to deal with potential aggression."
Second incident
MIVB staff had to deal with another incident in the same district yesterday. Around 7:30AM, near the Boudewijn station, a passenger threatened security staff in the metro with a knife. The man managed to escape, but he too was arrested a little later and taken to the police station. He too is under the jurisdiction of public prosecutors, who will decide whether he remains under arrest.
No link between the two incidents has been found.