Police officers by a police vehicle near Leidseplein during an active hostage situation in an Apple Store in Amsterdam on Feb 22, 2022. — AFP
Apple Inc’s flagship retail store in Amsterdam is in the midst of a hostage situation, according to local social media posts and a statement from the city’s police department.
“There is an ongoing hostage situation at the Apple Store at Leidseplein at the moment,” the police said in a statement posted on Twitter. “To ensure the safety of all people involved we are not able to share information about the situation and/or actions taken by the police.”
Several Twitter accounts showed footage of police amassed outside the store at the bustling Leidseplein square, in addition to a man holding another man at gunpoint inside the store. The police said earlier during the incident on Tuesday that police had been dispatched due to “someone with a firearm” at the Apple store. The department also said earlier it was reluctant to provide further information that might disrupt the police action and investigation.
Other videos show police speaking over megaphones to people in the store and other officers stationed outside with weapons. A local livestream of the incident shows the area surrounding the Apple store taped off and police searching nearby cars. It’s unclear what prompted the hostage situation, but some local reports have speculated that it came after a robbery attempt.
A spokesperson for Cupertino, California-based Apple didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. A number of Apple retail stores around the world have faced smash-and-grab robberies in the past, targeted at pricey iPhones, iPads and Mac computers. – Bloomberg
