Kortrijk (Brussels Morning Newspaper) -The well-known Kortrijk restaurant De Geverfde Vogel announced bankruptcy. The documentary referenced De Geverfde Vogel as a Kortrijk nightlife district venue which existed for 45 years.
The Kortrijk-based café De Geverfde Vogel ceased operations after being declared bankrupt after 45 years of continuous business. The business in the Burgemeester Reynaertstraat nightlife district faced a crucial spiking incident that affected more than forty women who disclosed substances being added to their alcoholic beverages, according to reports by VRT.
A few victims reported being victimized and assaulted along with raped after their drink tampering. Before bankruptcy was enacted, the café went out of business following the arrest of its young owner, who ran the restaurant from Kuurne. The spiking scandal caused by the business cost them potential buyers, which resulted in its complete financial failure.
The commercial court confirmed the bankruptcy of De Geverfde Vogel operating companies, thus stopping this historic Kortrijk café from continuing its operations.
For many decades, the restaurant functioned as a cornerstone of the nightlife in the city before it unexpectedly shut down. The former operator who sparked drinks faced arrest before he announced his plans to exit the business.
What is the background of the spiking scandal and bankruptcy in Kortrijk’s nightlife?
The city of Kortrijk in Western Flanders, Belgium, is a city mainly famous for its energetic nightlife, especially in Burgemeester Reynaertstraat. De Geverfde Vogel is the oldest café that has been in the area for 45 years before closing down due to bankruptcy.
Its closure comes as a result of a spiking investigation wherein more than 40 women claimed to have had their drinks spiked in bars within the city, with some of the victims reporting being sexually assaulted afterwards. The events attracted great concern among the population and raised questions about the safety of individuals at the places of entertainment.
The fate of the café began to deteriorate when its attendant, a man in his twenties, originally from Kuurne, was arrested for the crime. Various efforts were made in an attempt to sell the business. However, the negative exposure kept off any potential buyers. Another café from the district implicated in the spiking dossier was not different—it was compelled to shut its doors on account of bankruptcy.
Legal consequences spread among staff – a former worker of the bar who is a suspect, now in a pre-trial detention cage, and the previous owner of De Geverfde Vogel, now under house arrest with an ankle bracelet in the Nijmegen restaurant.
