Man arrested after copycat car scare in busy street

A SUSPECTED terrorist was arrested in Antwerp yesterday after what appeared to be an attempt to copy the Westminster attack.

Patrolling soldiers in the Belgian port city swooped as a car sped towards a crowded pedestrianised shopping street at high speed. The vehicle stopped before anyone was injured.

Knives and other weapons, including what was described as a “riot gun”, were discovered when security personnel searched the car.

Police arrested a man suspected of being the driver. He is named as Mohamed R, 39, a French national of Tunisian origin, living in France.

Eyewitnesses told of bystanders jumping out of the way as the car sped towards them.

“The car was stopped as it jumped a red light, and a safety perimeter was established around it immediately,” said a local police source.

“Soldiers on patrol searched it and it was found to contain weapons and other illegal material.

“The driver was wearing a military-style uniform and arrested at the scene.

“An anti-terrorist enquiry was launched.”

Bomb disposal experts were last night checking a canister containing an unknown substance.

The motive behind the incident remains unclear.

Federal prosecutors, who typically handle cases of Islamist violence, said they had been called in “based on all these elements and the events in London yesterday”.

However, French authorities believe the arrested man was trying to escape a police check, rather than trying to hit people, a source said.