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Flowers are installed on the scene of the killing on 19 March in Utrecht. REUTERS / Piroschka van de Wouw

The trail of the terrorist attack now seems " seriously " studied in the investigation into the killing that killed three people, Monday, March 18, in a tram in Utrecht (Netherlands), said Tuesday investigators. They claim to have found " no connection " between the main suspect of Turkish origin and the victims.

" At this stage a terrorist motive is taken seriously " for the attack on Utrecht, which left three dead and seven wounded (updated report), said in a joint statement the prosecution and the local police, who arrested - in total - three suspects. They explained that they were relying on a letter found in the car of the main suspect, Gokmen Tanis, a 37-year-old man born in Turkey. The latter was arrested Monday after an eight-hour manhunt. A firearm was seized during his arrest, said the investigators.

Who is the main suspect?

A short time ago, however, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said that "other things" could be " excluded " than terrorist motivation, especially that of a family dispute. " The other motives are not excluded, they are also the object of investigations ", added the parquet floor and the police Tuesday. In addition to the main suspect, two other men aged 23 and 27 were still in custody on 18 March after being arrested on Monday night. No details were given on their degree of alleged involvement.

According to the Dutch public television and radio NOS, Gokmen Tanis appeared two weeks ago in court in the Netherlands in a rape case. Some members of his family may have links to radical Muslim groups, but, NOS said, the man is also known for his unstable behavior since his separation from his wife two years ago. Witnesses of the street car kill reported that the gunman targeted a woman and people trying to help her, according to media reports.

Solidarity with the Netherlands

On this man already known to the Dutch justice system, considered the main suspect, the Turkish intelligence services are " gathering information, " said Monday evening Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. " Some say that (the shooting) is a family dispute, others say it is a terrorist act ," he added in an interview with the Turkish TV channel Ulke TV. The European Union, the United States and Russia in particular have expressed their solidarity with the Netherlands.

( with AFP )