Dendermonde (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – The Dendermonde court handed down a 5-year prison term to a man who is 45 years old. The suspect abducted his wife to a warehouse in Lokeren before subjecting her to severe mistreatment. The offender received a suspended prison sentence of 1 year since he assisted in the crime.
The Dendermonde court in the Flemish province of East Flanders, Belgium, handed a man who was 45 years old five years of real prison time because he kidnapped and physically mistreated his wife inside a Lokeren warehouse. A co-suspect gained an unsealed one-year sentence for his involvement in the event. The brief attack did not influence the victim’s choice to remain with her husband.
The warehouse visit had been arranged by the husband to speak about their relationship with his victim. Security cameras recorded her 15-minute period of physical abuse while her husband and the co-suspect restrained her.
After the attack, she was brought to a rented apartment in Antwerp, where additional physical mistreatment occurred. Police discovered the woman with critical wounds when they found her, which included three broken ribs, together with facial trauma and head wounds.
The expert who evaluated him diagnosed him as dominant and narcissistic, but his legal team explained he acted impulsively when learning about his wife’s prostitution activities. The individual who assisted with the kidnapping obtained a suspended sentence.
What led to the Dendermonde kidnapping and assault case?
The Dendermonde court issued sentences after a 45-year-old Belgian man abducted his wife then physically attacked her severely in Lokeren, Belgium.
The crime happened inside a warehouse before police reports show the victim was transported to an Antwerp apartment, where she received further abuse. Security cameras showed that the abusive attack spanned exactly 15 minutes until the victim sustained three broken ribs, severe facial damage and head injuries.
Under Belgian law, perpetrators of domestic violence can face severe legal consequences, including up to 10 years of imprisonment for cases of aggravated assault.
Judges frequently grant suspended sentences to co-defendants in specific circumstances that require leniency when punishment times are determined. The court documents revealed that the defence presented emotional distress evidence based on how the man discovered his wife engaging in prostitution but existing police reports showed no record of incidents between the husband and wife.
