The case surrounding former Brussels police director Glenn Audenaert, who – after more than ten years of investigation, procedural errors and delays – was referred to the criminal court, will not be heard on Tuesday before the criminal court of Dendermonde. Audenaert must answer for passive corruption, money laundering, violation of professional secrecy, forgery and use of forged documents.
The file revolves around the move of the federal police to the former State Administrative Center in Brussels in 2011. Audenaert, the former director of the federal judicial police of Brussels, is said to have received a bribe to help push through the move.
In 2012, the investigating judge in Dendermonde charged him with breach of professional secrecy and forgery, and in September 2015 he was also charged with passive corruption and money laundering. He was then released under strict conditions and later retired.
In the same investigation, lobbyist Koen Blijweert was also arrested in March 2017, but he was released shortly afterwards under conditions for health reasons. In 2019, an audit by the Ministry of Finance showed that the building had cost taxpayers more than 40 million euros too much. Blijweert died in February 2021.
Correctional court
The public prosecutor wanted to bring Glenn Audenaert before the criminal court for bribery, money laundering, violation of professional secrecy and forgery. According to the investigation, Audenaert allegedly received an amount of more than 100,000 euros from Blijweert and his business partner, but Audenaert previously stated that it was a loan.
The investigation dragged on for years and in 2019 the Ghent AI ruled that all investigative actions by the then investigating judge in Dendermonde were null and void.
Criminal proceedings inadmissible
Only after years of investigation did the public prosecutor’s office discover that investigating judge Emmanuel Böting had acted in the case in his previous position as public prosecutor. The criminal action itself was not declared inadmissible at that time, so that the investigation could continue. The council chamber in Dendermonde finally decided at the end of 2022 that Audenaert must answer before the criminal court.
The case was initiated in March and was placed for hearing on September 12, but the Dendermonde court will not be able to hear the merits of the case. “A new date for the hearing will be determined at the hearing,” says press judge Sofie Van Ginderdeuren.
This article is originally published on bruzz.be
