Two arrested in Europe Ikea bombings
Cars pass next to an Ikea store on May 31, 2011 in Lomme, next Lille, northern France. Small explosives concealed in alarm clocks detonated at Ikea furniture stores in Belgium, France and the Netherlands, Belgian authorities said today. The explosions caused no damage or injuries.
Polish police said Saturday that they had arrested and charged two men with planting bombs at Ikea stores in several European countries and attempting to extort $8 million from the retail giant, the Associated Press reports.
The two men arrested are both 39 years old and live in the northern Polish city of Gdynia. In accordance with Polish law, they were identified only as Mikolaj G. and Adam K. Andrzej Matejuk, police commander with Poland's Central Bureau of Investigation, told the AP that while one of the two men arrested has a criminal record that includes drug dealing, the other man has no previous record, speaks several languages and has worked as a manager at several large companies.
CNN reports that there were eight explosions at Ikea stores in Europe between May and early September. According to a police statement, CNN reports, hundreds of officers from Poland's Central Investigation Bureau and investigators from other countries were involved in the case. Originally, the explosions were treated as separate cases. The suspects are said to have used technology and traveled large distances to avoid detection in Poland.
According to the AP, no one was killed in the string of attacks, though two people were injured in an explosion in Germany. The demand for the $8 million came after the most recent incident, in Prague.
"The perpetrators prepared for this very carefully. They set up a bank account, demanded a transfer over the Internet, but fortunately the ransom was never paid," Matejuk said.