40th anniversary of Brabant Killers attack commemorated in Aalst
A commemoration was held on Sunday at the Delhaize supermarket in Aalst to honour the victims of the Brabant Killers, 40 years after the infamous deadly attack. Mayor Christophe D’Haese delivered a speech, followed by the laying of flowers at the monument.
On 9 November 1985, the Brabant Killers gang carried out a brutal assault at Delhaize in Aalst, leaving eight people dead. Four decades later, the identity of those behind the gang remains unknown, a fact that continues to frustrate D’Haese.
“The Brabant Killers were more than a series of robberies; it was an attack on the rule of law,” he said, calling it “a very dark day”. He has repeatedly urged parliament to pursue the truth about the gang’s motives and actions.
“Silence weighs more than words, and time brings no healing, just a few memories,” he said. “Never before have there been so many complaints about the justice system. Interpreters are not paid, prisons are overcrowded and full of people sleeping rough, and so on. We live in a strange country where justice moves as slowly as pitch.”
© BELGA VIDEO OLIVIER SCHEIR
Despite the long wait for answers, D’Haese said he remains hopeful that the truth will one day come to light. “Aalst will continue to commemorate this. As long as justice is not forthcoming, we will remain here and bear this injustice for as long as necessary. We demand justice, truth, and recognition. Aalst will never forget this.”
"Time hasn’t revealed the names of the perpetrators, but it has widened the gap between law and justice"
D’Haese recalled the personal significance of the date. “I was 18 years old then, and it was the last attack by the Brabant Killers. Innocent lives were brutally taken back then. These were Aalst residents who did nothing wrong, except being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Forty years later, the relatives still have no answers. Meanwhile, it has become part of Aalst’s DNA.”
The investigation into the killings was temporarily closed in June last year, a decision D’Haese described as deeply disappointing. “That wasn’t the outcome we hoped for. I can be harsh sometimes, but sometimes consciences need to be shaken. The victims deserve better. Time hasn’t revealed the names of the perpetrators, but it has widened the gap between law and justice.”
Around 100 people attended the commemoration in the Delhaize car park, where a monument stands in memory of the victims. Among those laying flowers were several local residents and former mayor Anny De Maght. A separate floral tribute was also scheduled to take place at Aalst cemetery on Sunday afternoon.
#FlandersNewsService | A commemoration for the victims of the Brabant Killers in Aalst, 9 November 2024 © BELGA PHOTO VICTOR VAN KERCKHOVE
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