A man has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for the rape of one woman and the attempted manslaughter of another. The cases were linked thanks to DNA analysis.
Home News
Rapist jailed for 10 years after DNA analysis links two assaults
Published:
In January 2024, a 29-year-old woman was pushed off her scooter, beaten and strangled. Then, in June of the same year, a 36-year-old woman was pushed off her bike, before being hit several times and raped.
In both cases, there was initially no trace of the perpetrator. DNA analysis later established a link between the two assaults.
A 40-year-old man from Temse, identified as Bart L, has now been found guilty of rape and attempted manslaughter. He was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment and five years’ supervision.
He had 32 previous convictions, including for violent and sexual offences. As a minor, he appeared before the youth court four times for offences of robbery with violence and indecent assault. He had also been convicted 10 times for traffic offences and 16 times for criminal offences including stalking, theft, assault and battery, and breaches of drugs and firearms legislation.
It’s unbelievable that someone who’s been convicted so many times can live in society without any conditions
During the trial, the public prosecutor’s office described him as “a man with a particularly dangerous disposition”. Lawyers for the civil parties called him a “sexual predator” and a “loose cannon”.
Speaking to VTM, one of the women, Melanie, said: “It’s unbelievable that someone who’s been convicted so many times can live in society without any conditions.”