Suspect foiled attack remains in cell
However, his lawyer Walter Van Steenbrugge asked for the release to have the suspect admitted to a psychiatric institution. Van Steenbrugge is appealing against his further detention.
Peter C. was arrested in De Panne on Saturday 11 February around 5.30 pm. According to the federal prosecutor’s office, he probably had the intention to commit an attack during the election of Miss Belgium. That election took place in the Proximus Theater in Plopsaland and eventually started with a delay of more than an hour. Peter C. was in possession of two firearms and a bulletproof vest.
Since the start of the investigation, the defense has emphasized that there was absolutely no question of a foiled attack. C. would have taken the weapons with him because he had felt threatened for a long time. According to his own words, the weapons only served to protect himself. Walter Van Steenbrugge: “In my opinion, there are no sufficiently serious indications of guilt. And two, I also said, that based on the extensive reporting of three specialists, two psychiatrists and a psychologist, that there really is a mental problem “And if there is not sufficient mental capacity, then you cannot commit a crime. In the meantime, a measure has been taken by the justice of the peace that the person concerned could be transferred to a closed setting within a psychiatric clinic.”
Van Steenbrugge appeals against the further detention of his client. The Chamber of Indictment will rule on the case within two weeks.