Belgium’s most severely punished child abuser ever - Pieter C. - has been released on licence. The decision was taken by the East Flemish sentence execution court after the culprit spent seven years in prison media outlets report. The man had received a 19-year prison sentence and remains under the supervision of the judicial authorities for a further 15 years. Pieter C. is currently living in the Netherlands where he will receive therapy.
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Belgium’s most severely punished child abuser released early
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Pieter C., a businessman from Antwerp, was convicted in January 2016 after being found in possession of 700 gigabytes of child pornography and abusing small children in the Philippines and Cambodia. He was exposed by America’s FBI.
Pieter C. was arrested in Cambodia in March 2016, where he together with his wife ran an orphanage. The orphanage was a cover for pedophile activities.
Seven years later, Pieter C. is now on parole. Since May he has been living in Amsterdam, as he holds Dutch nationality. He is monitored by the Dutch judiciary and has to comply with strict conditions. He has to attend therapy sessions, is not allowed to have contact with minors and is not allowed to move abroad.
VRT journalist Dirk Leestmans, who has been following the case, says the release was a decision of the SURB, the sentence execution court.
"People have the right to ask for early release, the case is then dealt with. A file is already created in prison. The court does not judge a case lightly. The man has to meet several strict conditions,"
Is this decision exceptional?
There has been some outrage over the release. Dirk Leestmans: "In itself, it is not strange that people do not serve their full sentence, it happens very often. I am thinking of life sentences, but in this case, it is indeed remarkable that after receiving a 19-year sentence, you are released after seven years. That can be called relatively early, especially for sexual offences".