On Wednesday, a person was attacked by a man armed with an axe in the middle of a shopping center full of people. The victim was taken to the hospital with head injuries, and police are investigating the motive behind the brutal assault that was caught on film.

The attack took place on Wednesday afternoon at a supermarket in Nijmegen, Netherlands. The incident was captured on video and has spread widely on social media.

Police state that the victim was taken to the hospital with head injuries and the perpetrator was later arrested. However, the police have not yet released any information about the events leading up to the incident.

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44-year-old Raymond Janssen witnessed the assault and intervened between the two men involved, whom he observed were arguing.

– I jumped in between them. Because I thought: I’m here with my children, so you are not going to start a fight. With someone else’s help, I pushed one of them toward the fishmonger and the other back into the shopping center, he told De Gelderlander.

Then one of the men came running with an axe and chased the other man. Janssen gave chase and used shopping carts to go after the duo, who fell down. The man with the axe got up and struck a blow to the victim’s head. What happened afterward can be seen in the video clip.

Photo: christopdesoto, CC BY 2.0

Personal Conflict

Several bystanders intervened and tackled the attacker to the ground. His axe was seized. He also received several heavy punches and kicks.

According to several sources who spoke to De Gelderlander, the two men had a personal conflict and knew each other. Exactly what happened between them and the nature of their relationship is still unknown.

According to unconfirmed reports, the attacker is said to be a 45-year-old “non-Western migrant” who started swinging an axe:

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