If the police or a citizen suspects you of a criminal offence, they may arrest you. If you are arrested by a civilian, the civilian must hand you over to the police as soon as possible. 

If you are arrested, the police have the right to detain you at the police station for a maximum period of nine hours. The nine-hour period does not start until you have had a visit from the Assistant Public Prosecutor, who usually tells you something about the procedure at the police station. This step is called arraignment. Unfortunately, the hours between 00:00 and 09:00 do not count. It is intended that you will be interrogated during these 9 hours. You will be asked if you want to speak to a lawyer before the interrogation and if you want a lawyer during the interrogation. 

Our lawyers can assist the minor at this stage. The minor then has to give the name of our lawyer to the police so that we can be informed and visit the minor. This is free of charge for you.

After the minor has been detained at the police station for nine hours, the police must release the minor or take him into insurance. Insuring means that the Assistant Public Prosecutor will issue an order allowing the minor to be detained at the police station for a maximum of three more days. This period can be extended once in case of urgent need.