A brawl in the center of Etten-Leur got completely out of hand on Sunday evening. Officers and security guards who tried to calm things down were attacked by dozens of people. An unknown number of bystanders and three officers were injured in the violence. The police are talking about an ‘absurd explosion of violence’ at the end of a day in Etten-Leur that was dominated by the Profwielerronde.
When officers responded to a report of a fight around 9:30 a.m., peace seemed to have returned for a while. But moments later, according to the police, the flames flared up again and officers and security guards were attacked. According to the police, the situation was so threatening that the officers had to use their batons and stand in line to keep the crowd at bay.
More agents were called to come to Etten-Leur. The public was called on several times to leave, but the police, aided by security guards, had difficulty restoring public order. People kept beating and kicking officers. They also had stuff thrown at them.
At the Raadhuisplein and the Markt in Etten-Leur, three men (34, 52 and 54) and a woman (52) from Sint Willebrord were eventually arrested for public violence. They’re still stuck. The officers have filed a report of assault. The reason for the fight has not been made clear to the police. “There was a disturbance. When we got there, it actually seemed to be over. And then the crowd turns against the officers,” says a spokesman.
‘Absolute low point’
Mayor Mark Verheijen says in a reaction that ‘it is very unfortunate that a wonderful day in Etten-Leur, which was dominated by the cycling round, has to end like this.’ “The scale and intensity of this violence has a major impact on the police officers, guards and innocent bystanders involved,” he said.
He calls the fact that three officers were injured on Sunday evening in an attempt to get things under control ‘an absolute low point’. The mayor hopes and expects that severe punishments will follow. “This to draw a clear line.”
The police do not rule out that more arrests will follow.