Brussels Court Sentences 21-Year-Old to 37 Months for Planned Mosque Arson and Mass Shooting
A 21-year-old was given a 37-month prison term by the Brussels Court of Appeal for plotting a mosque fire and a mass shooting, and the federal prosecutor's request for his immediate arrest was rejected.
The Brussels Court of Appeal sentenced a 21-year-old extremist to 37 months in prison for devising two terrorist attacks: setting fire to a mosque and using an automatic rifle to kill as many victims as possible. Authorities had identified him through his activity on far-right channels of Telegram, where he expressed admiration for Anders Breivik and Brenton Tarrant and authored a manifesto advocating a white ethnostate.
To verify his intent, the federal prosecutor deployed an undercover operative, who later interacted with the suspect as he searched for weapons. After the judgment, the prosecutor sought the young man's immediate arrest, but the appellate court refused the request. Defense counsel maintains that despite his extremist rhetoric, he never incited anyone nor pursued a concrete plan.
Why it matters
The case shows how European courts are handling homegrown extremist plots and the limits of immediate detention after sentencing.
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