Story:
Horror in the Netherlands: Terrorist Drove Van Into Crowd at PinkPop Festival.
One dead and three injured after the hit-and-run accident.
Fact Check:
A story in circulation online states a ‘Horror’ in Netherlands, as a Terrorist Drove Van Into Crowd at PinkPop Festival. One person died and three injured in the alleged hit-and-run terrorist attack. The accident mentioned in the story is true, but it is not a terrorist attack.
About the Incident
The accident in question happened in early hours of 18th June 2018 after the Dutch PinkPop concert (a popular festival) in Landgraaf Municipality of Netherlands. A white color Van crashed into people, killing one person and injuring three others seriously. The incident took place few hours after Bruno Mars completed his concert. The Van drove away after the unfortunate accident, and Police were on the lookout. However, later the Van driver – a 34-year-old local Dutchman – called Police himself after which he was arrested in Amsterdam. As investigation is going on, the motive behind the crash is not clear as of this writing.
Terrorist Drove Van Into Crowd at PinkPop Festival?
The same day incident happened, Free Speech Time website freespeechtime.net published an article with headline “Terrorist Drove a Van Into Crowd at PinkPop Festival In The Netherlands“. That’s how the ‘Terrorist attack’ claim spread through some online outlets. The truth of the matter being, the article on Free Speech Time website simply mentions the incident – without actually calling it a Terrorist attack. After reporting the crash accident at PinkPop Festival, the rest of the article talks about innocent people usually killed in terrorist attacks. It is not related to the accident in Netherlands. Moreover, Free Speech Time is not a reliable website and it frequently publishes content against Muslims (promoting Islamophobia).
Following the consequences, after initial investigation, a Dutch public prosecutor clarified that the local Van driver did not have any terrorist motive. So, the claim that a Terrorist Drove Van into Crowd at PinkPop Festival in Netherlands is a hoax. Notably, Free Speech Time website did not mention the Van driver called Police himself later and surrendered. Witnesses at the scene told Dutch newspaper Algemeen Dagblad that the victims of the accident were sitting on the road, whom the suspect might not have seen in the dark. Because the Van driver left the scene after the incident and reported later, it may perhaps be a case of drunk-driving.
Hoax or Fact:
Hoax.
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