Three Britons held over Dutch 'kidnap plot'

Dutch police arrested three Britons with a "violent reputations" following reports that a gang intended to take two people hostage, authorities in Holland confirmed today.

Special squads from the Dutch regional police swooped on Thursday night, arresting nine people in total in a series of raids in Amsterdam.

The Dutch Public Prosecution Service said the arrests had thwarted the planning of an attempted kidnapping.

The service released a statement on its website stating that the Britons had flown out to Holland at the end of August to carry out the kidnappings.

But, following a tip-off, police swooped to make the arrests.

The intended kidnappings related to the criminal underworld, the release said.

Four Dutch nationals and a Colombian were among those arrested.

Police also recovered weapons from one of the arrest sites.

The identities of the Britons are yet to be released.

A spokesman for the Dutch national police said: "We can confirm that a number of Britons were amongst those arrested on Thursday."