The West Flemish Public Prosecutor’s Office has confirmed that a suspect has been detained following three fatal stabbings in the West Flemish town of Roeselare on Sunday.
Three people were killed in three attacks the first of which at around midday on Sunday. The first victim was a 45-year-old man who was stabbed outside a beauty salon. Shortly afterwards it emerged that a 43-year-old woman had been killed at a house nearby. Both of the first two victims were Afghan nationals.
In the early evening the body of a third victim was found on the Hoogleedsesteenweg. The 67-year-old victim is reported to be the suspect’s former neighbour.
The perpetrator fled the scene. He was apprehended on Sunday at the railway station in Izegem (West Flanders) following an intensive police search during which helicopters were deployed and roadblocks set up.
A crime of passion
The mayor of Roeselare, Kris Declercq (Christian democrat) to VRT News that it would appear that the killings were a crime of passion. “Everyone in Roeselare was shocked by the news. At first, the situation was not very clear, but it now appears to have been a crime of passion”. Mr Declercq added that “The alleged perpetrator of the triple murder has now been brought before an examining magistrate”.
On Monday, it emerged that the suspect was no stranger to the police and the courts. Last Thursday, he was sentenced to one year in prison, half of which suspended, after been convicted of assault and battery against his wife and one of his children.