The daughter of Irmgard Boulet was probably pricked and drugged with a hypodermic needle on Saturday evening when she visited the Pleinfestival in Kaatsheuvel. The girl came home completely confused and unresponsive. Six people have since come forward because they suspect they are victims of ‘needle picking’. An 18-year-old woman became unwell and was taken to hospital.
Mother Irmgard and her daughter attended the Pleinfestival on Saturday for a pleasant evening. She went home a little earlier. Her daughter was left with a bunch of friends.
“When she got home she was all confused. I couldn’t have a conversation with her.”
“When she got home she was completely confused and I couldn’t have a conversation with her. I didn’t know what to think,” said the shocked mother.
“Now that I hear that all people have been stung, I am very shocked. It breaks my heart that this probably happened to her.”
“In the past, something was thrown into a drink, now you secretly get a prick with a needle,” says Irmgard. “It keeps going one step further. I hope there is control, this has to stop,” she says.
It is the talk of the town on Anton Piekplein, where Sunday is the last day of the Pleinfestival. “Very intense what happened,” says a young visitor. “I don’t feel really safe anymore, but I’m in the company of some friends who can protect me.”
Fianni, who is also walking around at the event, says that a friend of hers was most likely pricked with a hypodermic needle. “She was sitting on a bench last night and was spinning all over. That was really bad to see.”
“I’m afraid I’ll get stung too, it’s so inconspicuous.”
Like many others, she is upset at what has happened. “I just don’t get why people do this. And I’m afraid I’ll get stung too, it’s so inconspicuous.”
Male visitors are also shocked by what happened on Saturday night. “It’s not pleasant to hear,” Chris says. “It is difficult to deal with, I will continue to pay attention. Other than that, I think there is little you can do about it.”
The Forensic Investigation Service is investigating whether the six reporters were indeed stabbed or pricked and if so with what. The 18-year-old woman’s illness is also being investigated.
The Square Festival will continue on Sunday. According to a spokesperson for the municipality of Loon op Zand, which includes Kaatsheuvel, it is not yet clear what exactly happened on Saturday evening. Therefore, the municipality sees no reason to cancel the event on Sunday.
The organization of the Square Festival does not want to say anything about what happened.
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