Balen (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Police discovered Heidi De Schepper’s disappearance from Balen in early 2010 following eight months of being lost from official records. Law enforcement activities combine with public tips to actively search for the missing woman. The investigation received about twenty tips from individuals who knew her previously.
The Merksem resident Heidi De Schepper, from age 26, went missing in 2010. It took the police 14 years to notice she was missing before making her discovery. Heidi was officially removed from the administrative register in November 2010, meaning she “no longer existed” in administrative terms. According to the findings of an official investigation, Heidi De Schepper no longer lived at her official address, which led to her removal. The police recently started a search for her after people failed to report her missing despite her absence since 2010. The investigation into her disappearance continues to be important because it reveals why nobody noticed her disappearance for the long period she was gone.
“The file doesn’t allow us to dig that up; it’s only kept for a few years,”
Says Leysen.
“So we can’t say anything about the cause. It could be a partner, a landlord, or new owners. I suspect it’s hard to find out. It’s possible that the police still have some documents, I don’t dare say anything about that.”
“At that moment, an assessment is made as to whether the explanation is plausible. Based on that, further investigation will be conducted, or the file will be closed. After such a deletion, the administrative part of the municipality will stop.”
Since 2008, Heidi De Schepper, her partner, and their three children have resided in Balen. The provisional driver’s license that her authorities gave to her in May 2010 remained provisional because she had not finalised its transformation to permanent status. Her valid identity card from 2011 remained unrenewed throughout its expiration term. Her limited number of social friendships and her limited activities led to an isolated existence. When she reached eighteen, she left home to start a new life in Balen with her boyfriend. The authorities learned about her disappearance because her children’s school became concerned about her unexplained absence.
About twenty tips have reached the police regarding Heidi’s disappearance, and most tipsters have interacted with her during previous times in her life. To date, no breakthrough has been achieved. Thus, the police maintain their search for anyone who knows Heidi or has knowledge about her disappearance. The ongoing investigation continues to focus on finding any vital information that will guide authorities in locating Heidi.
Implications of Heidi’s administrative removal
Administrative systems present intricate challenges which lead people to unexpectedly fail to get properly registered. The deletion from the register rendered her inaccessible to proper administrative procedures, including Belgian legal status functions and service benefits. The authorities have processed twenty different tips from people who notified them about the woman’s disappearance.
“The tips mainly come from people who knew her in the past. The investigators are now working to see if they yield anything,”
He says.
He does not comment on the tips’ content.
“They are now being fully analysed.”
In this case, the importance of vigilant oversight for people who might fade from sight without warning. Emergency services ask anyone who knows anything about Heidi Knoeff’s current situation to contact them because they need help solving this missing person case. Heidi’s safe recovery remains a top priority for law enforcement, who keep intensifying their search for new insights into her whereabouts.
