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The man, identified as Josef B by RTV Drenthe, appeared in front of the examining magistrate on Thursday. The justice commissioner of the North Netherlands Court ordered that he be detained for 14 days “on suspicion of unlawful deprivation of liberty”.

De rechter-commissaris van de rechtbank Noord-Nederland heeft zojuist de bewaring bevolen voor de duur van 14 dagen van een 58-jarige man op verdenking van wederrechtelijke vrijheidsberoving. De verdachte – die dinsdag werd aangehouden in Ruinerwold - zit in beperkingen.

— OM Noord-Nederland (@OM_NoordNL) October 17, 2019

\"I have never come across anything like this before,\" said Roger de Groot the mayor of Ruinerwold at a press conference.

On Thursday, police said -- without any further explanation -- that they had expanded their investigation to other locations in northern Holland.

Local man Frank Wijers, who works at the garage just beside the café, told ABC News that the story was the talk of the town. “It’s a strange story,” he said, “Quite a shock!”

“It’s a very pleasant community here,” he said. “When you participate in public life, it’s alright. But if you don’t want to, that’s alright too. People leave you alone.”

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