The Flemish Health and Welfare Minister Caroline Gennez (socialist) has told the Flemish Parliament’s Welfare Select Committee that residents of a third care home have been identified in video footage of the mistreatment of people by those whose job it is to provide care to them. The 6 latest victims to be identified are residents of the Het Mariahuis care home in Gavere (East Flanders).
6 residents of residential care home in Gavere also victims of mistreatment featured in disturbing video footage
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Ms Gennez told the Select Committee that the Flemish Ardennes Local Police Service said that had identified 6 further victims of mistreatment on Monday. “This means that it seems that the perpetrators are also active in a third care facility.”
The manager of the residential care home in Gavere has confirmed the news and added that some of the residents shown being maltreated in the footage are still alive. The video footage can be traced back to the same suspects that also assaulted, humiliated and verbally abused residents at residential care homes in Oudenaarde (East Flanders) and Kortrijk (West Flanders). The footage was shot while the suspects were doing holiday jobs at the homes in the period between May 2024 and March 2025.
The Flemish Health and Welfare Minister says that she has no further information for the time being. “Of course the will get to the bottom of this and of course through all our department is on the highest state of readiness and will provide all the follow-up measures required”.
Ms Gennez also expressed her disgust at what has happened. “What we have seen here is simply disgusting. staff abusing their position of power to humiliate the weakest in our society, to treat them degradingly, that is simply abhorrent. There is really only one answer to this, absolute zero tolerance.”
Oudenaarde, Kortrijk and now Gavere
The investigation started after a report of a theft at the Meerspoort residential care centre in Oudenaarde. An 18-year-old student that worked part-time at the home was arrested. Videos were found on his phone showing residents being beaten, spat at and humiliated. Three other suspects were also arrested. According to VRT News sources 7 residents of the care home in Oudenaarde have since been recognised in the videos.