Ms Van Wymersch said the likely aim of the fire – believed to have been started deliberately – was to destroy “several files” inside.
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But police could not confirm that a bomb had exploded.
Five people have been held and questioned over a fire at Brussels’ criminology institute, a spokeswoman for the city’s prosecutors says. She added that the blast heard by residents in the vicinity was probably down to combustible materials rather than a bomb. No injuries reported neither terroristic traces.
Belgian police said a vehicle rammed through the gates and arsonists torched the building.
State broadcaster RTBF and other outlets had reported that a auto drove through a security barrier at the site about 2 a.m. (0000 GMT), followed by an explosion that caused significant damage to the facility on Brussels’ north side.
The pair are then said to have scaled a ladder and launched some kind of bomb at the building – before they torched their vehicle.
Belgian police deployed in force and sealed off the area.
There have been no casualties so far, said Pierre Meys, spokesman of the Brussels fire brigade.
The institute is linked to the Belgian ministry of justice and carries out forensic investigations in criminal cases, its director said.
He said about 30 firefighters were at the scene at around 3:00am (0100 GMT) fighting the blaze. “Windows of the lab were blown out dozens of meters away”.
The independent institute is located in Neder-Over-Heembeek, a suburb in the north of Brussels.
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Belgium has been high alert after suicide bombers struck Brussels airport and a metro station near the European Union headquarters on March 22, killing 32 people.
