As night fell on Utrecht there was still no confirmation of the motive for the killing of three people on a tram in the Dutch city on Monday.

With the earlier lockdown and advice to stay inside lifted, people were calm as they went about their business just a short walk from where the slayings happened.

The response from locals contrasted with that of the international media – which is on a worldwide hair trigger after the mass shooting of 50 people in New Zealand on Friday. I saw reporters and camera crews from France and Belgium packed on to my train to Utrecht, tripods and cameras in tow.

But the only clue of what had happened when we arrived at Utrecht central station was the presence of black-clad armed police, decked out in full tactical gear and with sub-machine guns at the ready. They were clearly there for reassurance, rather than on high alert: four were tucking into a well-earned dinner at the station’s Burger King.

Police elsewhere in the city had already arrested Gokmen Tanis, a 37-year-old Turkish national suspected of carrying out the killings. He had been taken into custody after a city-wide manhunt and early reports that there might be multiple shooters on the loose.

Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack Show all 30 1 /30 Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack Special Police Forces inspect a tram, after a shooting took place on a tram at the 24 Oktoberplace in Utrecht EPA Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack This image made available from the Twitter page of Police Utrecht shows an image of 37-year-old Gokman Tanis who police are looking for in connection with the tram shooting incident Police Utrecht/AP Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack Emergency services stand at the 24 Oktoberplace in Utrecht, on March 18, 2019 where a shooting took place. - Several people were wounded in a shooting on a tram in the Dutch city of Utrecht on March 18, police said, with local media reporting counter-terrorism police at the scene. "Shooting incident... Several injured people reported. Assistance started," the Utrecht police Twitter account said. "It is a shooting incident in a tram. Several trauma helicopters have been deployed to provide help." (Photo by Robin van Lonkhuijsen / ANP / AFP) / Netherlands OUTROBIN VAN LONKHUIJSEN/AFP/Getty Images ROBIN VAN LONKHUIJSEN AFP/Getty Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack Police, including heavily armed officers, flooded the area after the shooting Monday morning on a tram at a busy traffic intersection in a residential neighborhood AFP/Getty/Twitter/michadrost Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack Dutch counter terrorism police use a robot as they prepare to enter a house AP Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack Dutch counter terrorism police prepare to enter a house after a shooting incident in Utrecht AP Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack Forensic police search the interior of the tram EPA Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack An armed Police officer patrols at a train station in Rotterdam EPA Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack Special Police forces inspect a tram AFP/Getty Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack In this handout picture from the twitter account of @michadrost, special police forces patrol in Utrecht after a shooting near the 24 Oktoberplace, on March 18, 2019. - Three people were killed and nine injured in a shooting in the Dutch city of Utrecht, the mayor said today, adding that authorities were working on the basis of it being a terrorist attack. Dutch police released a picture of Turkish-born Gokmen Tanis they are hunting over a shooting on a tram in Utrecht today. (Photo by @michadrost / various sources / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - MANDATORY CREDIT "AFP PHOTO / Twitter / @michadrost" - NO MARKETING NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS --- NO ARCHIVE ---@MICHADROST/AFP/Getty Images @MICHADROST AFP/Getty/Twitter/michadrost Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack Police officer with a service dog Reuters Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack According to the the Dutch Police, several people have been injured and the perpetrator is still at large EPA Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack Members of the military police stand guard around the Binnenhof, The Hague AFP/Getty Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack Rescue workers install a screen AP Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack Several people were wounded on a tram in the Dutch city of Utrecht Sky News Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack Police forces walk near a tram AFP/Getty Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack Police are seen after a shooting in Utrecht, Netherlands, March 18, 2019. REUTERS/Piroschka van de Wouw PIROSCHKA VAN DE WOUW Reuters Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack Police secure the site Reuters Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack Members of the military police arrive to heighten security around the Binnenhof, The Hague EPA Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack Local media reported counter-terrorism police at the scene AFP/Getty Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack A body lays next to a tram as emergency services attend the scene AP Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack Armed police at the scene EPA Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack epa07446531 Emergency services at the scene where a shooting took place at the 24 Oktoberplace in Utrecht, The Netherlands, 18 March 2019. According to the the Dutch Police, several people have been injured in a shooting on a tram in the central Dutch city of Utrecht. EPA/ROBIN VAN LONKHUIJSEN ROBIN VAN LONKHUIJSEN EPA Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack Emergency services attend the scene of a shooting in Utrecht, Netherlands, Monday March 18, 2019. Police in the central Dutch city of Utrecht say on Twitter that "multiple" people have been injured as a result of a shooting in a tram in a residential neighborhood. (Martijn van der Zande via AP) Martijn van der Zande Martijn van der Zande/AP Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack "Shooting incident... Several injured people reported. Assistance started," the Utrecht police Twitter account said. "It is a shooting incident in a tram. Several trauma helicopters have been deployed to provide help." EPA Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack Police forces stand near a tram at the 24 Oktoberplace in Utrecht, on March 18, 2019 where a shooting took place. - A gunman who opened fire on a tram in the Dutch city of Utrecht on March 18, injuring several people, is on the run, police said. Police only spoke of one gunman but did not rule out the possibility there might be others, the ANP news agency quoted police as saying. (Photo by Robin van Lonkhuijsen / ANP / AFP) / Netherlands OUTROBIN VAN LONKHUIJSEN/AFP/Getty Images ROBIN VAN LONKHUIJSEN AFP/Getty Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack Emergency services attend the scene of a shooting in Utrecht, Netherlands, Monday March 18, 2019. Police in the central Dutch city of Utrecht say on Twitter that "multiple" people have been injured as a result of a shooting in a tram in a residential neighborhood. (Martijn van der Zande via AP) Martijn van der Zande Martijn van der Zande/AP Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack Police forces and emergency services stand at the 24 Oktoberplace in Utrecht, on March 18, 2019 where a shooting took place. - Several people were wounded in a shooting on a tram in the Dutch city of Utrecht on March 18, police said, with local media reporting counter-terrorism police at the scene. "A shooting occurred on the 24 Oktoberplein in Utrecht... Multiple people have been injured. The surrounding area has been cordoned off and we are investigating the matter," Utrecht police said on Twitter. (Photo by Robin van Lonkhuijsen / ANP / AFP) / Netherlands OUTROBIN VAN LONKHUIJSEN/AFP/Getty Images ROBIN VAN LONKHUIJSEN AFP/Getty Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack In this image taken from the Twitter page of Lilian Bruigom, emergency services attend the scene of a shooting in Utrecht, Netherlands, Monday March 18, 2019. Police in the central Dutch city of Utrecht say on Twitter that "multiple" people have been injured as a result of a shooting in a tram in a residential neighborhood. (Lilian Bruigom via AP) Lilian Bruigom Lilian Bruigom/AP Utrecht shooting: Man opens fire on passengers in Dutch tram attack epa07446481 Emergency services at the 24 Oktoberplace where a shooting took place in Utrecht, The Netherlands, 18 March 2019. According to the the Dutch Police, several people have been injured in a shooting on a tram in the central Dutch city of Utrecht. EPA/ROBIN VAN LONKHUIJSEN ROBIN VAN LONKHUIJSEN EPA

The tram line running past the station on which the attack happened was silent on Monday evening. The reason was clear further up the road, at the 24 Oktoberplein junction, the site of the killings.

The tram stop in question is effectively a massive urban motorway junction on the city’s inner ring road, isolated from the centre. It is criss-crossed by slip roads and bike paths and has a distinctly out-of-town feel.

Well past nightfall police continued a painstaking investigation – the tram visible and lit up beyond a very wide security cordon. Save for the occasional TV crew lighting up the night nearby, the area was remarkably quiet and people mostly stayed away.

Earlier in the day things had not been so quiet, when a man started “shooting wildly” on a tram, according to eyewitnesses who spoke to local media.

“I looked behind me and saw someone lying there behind the tram,” one told Dutch broadcaster NOS. “People got out of their cars and they started to lift her up.”

“I helped to pull her out and then I saw a gunman run towards us, with his gun raised. I heard people yell ‘Shooter! Shooter!’ and I started to run.”

As well as the three people confirmed dead, five were injured, some critically, Dutch authorities say.

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Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte said “a terror motive is not excluded” and went on to say the attack was met throughout the country with “a mix of disbelief and disgust”.

“If it is a terror attack, then we have only one answer: our nation, democracy, must be stronger than fanaticism and violence,” he added.

But authorities are approaching the case with an open mind, with conflicting reports from Turkish media suggesting that the attack may have been been triggered by a family dispute.

The Netherlands’ justice minister Ferd Grapperhaus later confirmed that the suspect arrested had a criminal record, but warned against early speculation about his alleged motives.