Bénédicte and Léa took the train at Guillemins station in Liège towards Ostend last Friday around 9 am. They stayed at the coast and spent the weekend in hotel HEB in the Koninginnestraat in Ostend. They extended their stay by two more nights, until Tuesday. According to a new police report, the mother and daughter returned to Liège by train on Tuesday evening, where they were seen at 11.20 pm before disappearing.
According to a person close to the family, it is not the first time that Bénédicte has run away with her daughter. The source tells ‘7sur7’ that Bénédicte is said to have alcohol problems and has already spent several periods in rehab. The woman had run away from such a center before. “One time she went to pick up her daughter from school and gave no news for a day,” the source said. “We don’t know why she did this, but we know she has problems in her head.”
Bénédicte lives with her daughter with her parents. “She has custody of Léa and it is nanou and papou (her maternal grandparents, ed.) who take care of her when Bénédicte is being treated,” explains the family member. “The father has no permanent custody for the simple reason that he lives in Liège, but works in Brussels. His working hours cannot be combined with caring for Léa.”
Father is looking for himself
Léa only visits her father every other weekend. But on Wednesday 20 July, the eve of the holidays, he exceptionally had to pick her up after her stay at the sea. “Léa had called him to say she was in Ostend, and then to tell him she didn’t have a phone. After that, he didn’t hear from her again and he became concerned,” the source said.
According to the source, Bénédicte’s ex-partner has received several calls, including from the police in the north of the country, informing him that residents had seen Léa and her mother. First in an amusement park in De Panne, between 19 and 20 July, then in Middelkerke, on Thursday 21 July. The last time the mother and daughter were officially seen was on the evening of July 19 at Guillemins station, where they were filmed by CCTV cameras.
“We believe they took the train back to sea,” the source said. Léa’s father decided to immediately go to sea himself to look for his daughter and ex-girlfriend, without result for the time being. “We don’t know if Bénédicte ran away with the girl or if something happened to them. It’s starting to get worrisome,” the source told ‘7sur7’.
Bénédicte is 1.77 meters tall and has medium-length blond hair in a square. She has tattoos on both forearms and is in possession of a gray wheeled bag. She was wearing a blue top and jeans shorts.
Léa is between 1.40 and 1.50 meters tall. She has long blond hair and was wearing a pink T-shirt.
Anyone who has more information is asked to contact the police on the toll-free number 0800/30300 or via Child Focus on the number 116000.
Free unlimited access to Showbytes? Which can!
Log in or create an account and don’t miss out on any of the stars.