Two 17-year-old boys have been arrested on suspicion of “state interference” in the Netherlands, prosecutors say, in a case with reported links to Russian spying.
The pair were allegedly contacted by pro-Russian hackers on the messaging app Telegram, Dutch media reported.
One of the boys allegedly walked past the offices of Europol, Eurojust and the Canadian embassy in The Hague carrying a “wi-fi sniffer” – a device designed to identify and intercept wi-fi networks.
The teenagers appeared before a judge on Thursday, who ordered one boy be remanded in custody and the other placed on strict home bail conditions until a hearing, which is due to take place in the next two weeks.
The National Office of the Netherlands Public Prosecution Service confirmed court appearance, but told the BBC it could not provide details on the case due to the suspects’ age and in “the interest of the investigation”, which is ongoing.
One of the boy’s father told Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf that police had arrested his son on Monday afternoon while he was doing his homework.
He said police told him that the arrest related to espionage and rendering services to a foreign country, the paper reports.
The teenager was described as being computer savvy and having a fascination for hacking, while holding a part-time job at a supermarket.
The Netherlands’ domestic intelligence and security agency declined to comment on the case when approached by the BBC.
