At the request of the West Flanders public prosecutor’s office, Bruges division, the police are asking for the following notice to be issued.
On Wednesday January 26, 2022, around 7 p.m., a 14-year-old girl was at the “Sint Laureins” tram stop in Westende. As she was waiting for her tram, she noticed a white van. The driver parked his van in the parking lot of the ‘Calidris’ estate, he got out of his vehicle and walked towards the young girl.
The man spoke to her in Dutch with an English accent. He then offered to take her home. She refused. The suspect then grabbed her by the arm and dragged her.
At this time, five young people arrived from the dunes and rescued him. They managed to free the young girl from the grip of the man. Three of these young people hit him and took him back to his car. The other two took care of the victim.
The girl then got on the tram and went home, where she told everything. The police were then notified.
Description du suspect : The suspect was 40 years old and had a swarthy complexion. He wore black pants with the Nike brand logo on the right pocket, a black mouth mask and a black cap.
The police ask the 5 young people to come forward
Description of the 5 youths: The youths were not wearing any particularly conspicuous clothing, but the victim remembers that one of them was wearing a black sleeveless jacket and a white cap. They spoke in Dutch.
The investigation revealed that a witness had also noticed a suspicious vehicle in the vicinity on several occasions on the evening of the incident.
The witness had his attention drawn to the van because it was shiny like a mirror.
The witness was able to draw a composite portrait of the driver.
The man was 40 to 50 years old and measured between 1m70 to 1m75. He was chubby and had a swarthy complexion. He was clean-shaven, had short black hair, and wore dark clothes.
It is possible that these two cases have no connection between them, but the investigators prefer not to exclude anything.
If people think they recognize this driver or if the driver recognizes himself, please contact the investigators.
Testimonials
If you recognize the man represented by the composite portrait or if you were one of the 5 young people, or if you have information on this fact, please contact the investigators via the address avisderecherche@police.belgium.eu
Testimonials can also be sent via the freephone number 0800 30 300. This opinion is available on www.police.be