Belgium: 17-Year-Old Held Over Mother and Sister’s Deaths
A 17-year-old boy has been arrested in connection with the deaths of his 51-year-old mother and his 20-year-old sister, whose bodies were found late on Sunday evening in Iddergem, a village within the municipality of Denderleeuw in Belgium’s East Flanders province. The East Flanders public prosecutor’s office has opened a murder investigation and appointed an investigating judge, according to VRT NWS.
What Happened
Police from the Denderleeuw/Haaltert zone were called to a residence on the Leliestraat around 11:00 p.m. on Sunday, 27 September, where they discovered the bodies of the two women, HLN reported. Emergency services arrived at the scene but could not save them.
The 17-year-old son of the family was arrested and interrogated for hours overnight, according to TV Oost. On Monday morning, the investigating judge, the judicial laboratory and a forensic doctor attended the scene, where a crime scene reconstruction took place.
Belgian media have reported that the victims were killed with an axe, though this detail has not been officially confirmed by the prosecutor’s office. Because the suspect is a minor, prosecutors have been deliberately sparing with information, as is customary under Belgian law.
A Family Tragedy Under Investigation
The case is being handled by the public prosecutor’s office for East Flanders, which requisitioned an investigating judge for a murder inquiry (moordonderzoek). In de Gazette noted that the prosecutor’s office has not disclosed further details about the precise circumstances of the deaths or what preceded the police intervention. The arrest does not establish guilt, and the suspect’s alleged involvement remains subject to the investigation.
The mayor of Denderleeuw described the events as serious but declined to comment further, citing the ongoing investigation.
The Suspect’s Lawyer Speaks
Jeroen D’hondt, the lawyer representing the 17-year-old, confirmed that his client had been questioned and described the interrogation as calm. “He answered the questions to the best of his ability,” D’hondt said, adding that the youth had “made statements about a motive, but given the situation I cannot elaborate on it.”
The lawyer characterised the case as unusual. “This is a very bizarre case,” he told VRT NWS. “Usually there is something very identifiable: drugs or extreme domestic violence that has occurred before, for example. In that sense, this is very remarkable” — a remark pointing to the apparent absence of such warning signs.
D’hondt said the teenager is likely to be placed in a closed youth institution first. “From there the investigation will run its course,” he said.
Legal Context
Under Belgian law, minors accused of crimes are dealt with by the juvenile court rather than the adult criminal justice system. The 17-year-old is expected to be brought before a juvenile court judge during the day on Monday. Serious offences can result in placement in a closed youth institution rather than prison.
Belgian press reporting is also constrained in cases involving minors, which explains the limited information released by prosecutors so far.
What to Watch For
The investigation now passes to the investigating judge, who will lead the inquiry into the circumstances of the two deaths. Because the suspect is a minor, a significant portion of the proceedings is expected to remain confidential, and no motive has been publicly confirmed.
For a country and community where such family tragedies are rare, the coming days will focus on understanding what led to the deaths — while the legal process for the young suspect unfolds largely out of public view.
Readers in Belgium seeking support can contact Tele-Onthaal on 106 or via chat at www.tele-onthaal.be. Young people can reach Awel on 102 or via awel.be. The helpline 1712 handles questions about violence, abuse and child maltreatment.