The Dutch lorry driver suspected of killing a yellow vest demonstrator in Belgium last week claims to have been attacked by ’10 to 20 men in camouflage gear’, his lawyer has told local broadcaster 1 Limburg.

The driver, who has turned himself into Belgian police, says he did not see any yellow vests during the incident, which took place last Friday.

The man, who comes from Landgraaf in Limburg, has not been taken into custody but is getting protection because of fears he could be the subject of revenge attacks, lawyer Richard Wagemans said.

The driver claims to have been unaware he had hit anyone until contacted by police at the weekend, Wagemans said.

Demonstrators in yellow vests blocked the motorway from Liege to Maastricht last week, stopping lorries but allowing private vehicles to go through. According to earlier reports, the Dutch lorry refused to stop and the 50-year-old demonstrator died at the scene of the protest.

Other reports suggest that the lorry’s windscreen was smashed by demonstrators before the fatal accident happened.