Minor who injured motorcyclist with knife appears before juvenile judge | Oudenaarde

It was during the Oudenaarde Flower Market that the knife attack took place near the intersection between Kattestraat and Nederstraat. NE (23) saw things go wrong and had her smartphone ready when the facts took place. “I saw that a motorcyclist was discussing with two boys on the sidewalk near the Kruidvat store. During that discussion, the two youths came closer and closer to the motorcyclist, who tried to keep them at a distance. Then one of the youngsters gave the first punch and a fight started.”

That fight was stopped after the intervention of two passers-by. NE: “A car stopped and two big men got out to intervene. Successfully, because the fight ended. Since the situation seemed to have calmed down, the men got in and drove on. Problem solved, we thought.”

But less than a minute later it was again price. NE: “One of the two youths started fighting with the motorcyclist again. That happened near Pasta Picasso. I then started filming because I had such a premonition that this would get out of hand. I thought the images were going to come in handy. Shortly afterwards I saw the boy who had started fighting again walk away and the motorcyclist collapse in the street as he called for help. That happened near the ice cream parlor Verlinden. I saw that the man was bleeding profusely and I put pressure on the wound with a towel. Meanwhile, the victim told me that the boy had stabbed him with a knife. Other people called the ambulance and police and took his helmet off so he could breathe better.”

One of the perpetrators was quickly arrested by the police. Using NE’s video, the young man who inflicted the stab was also arrested a few hours later. Mayor Marnic De Meulemeester (Open Vld) is shocked by the incident, but emphasizes that this is an isolated case. “It was a sunny Sunday, people came to see the flower market, nobody could predict or prevent this. The fact that our police is very alert and vigilant is evidenced by the fact that the perpetrators were caught very quickly. How it came to be that a discussion ended in an attack with a knife and why a young man carries a knife anyway, is now under investigation. We are waiting for further information. One of the perpetrators is a minor, so people are always careful with data. Most importantly, the victim is out of danger. We’re going to evaluate all that now. But again: nobody can do anything against this kind of excess.”