Arlon, Belgium
The man Belgian papers have dubbed “the most hated man in Belgium” went on trial this week for the 1996 rape and murder of several children. That year, Marc Dutroux confessed and led police to the basement dungeon where he had repeatedly raped six girls, ages 8 to 19, for months. Four were dead—two of starvation. Later that year, it emerged that Dutroux had previously been convicted of raping five kids, but had served just three years in prison. Hundreds of thousands of Belgians took to the streets in protest, demanding that he be jailed for life. But the trial was delayed for years because of judicial mix-ups and mishandled evidence. Dutroux, who has received numerous death threats, will appear in court behind a bulletproof glass shield.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Fox’s Kilmeade sorry for ‘just kill’ homeless remarkSpeed Read Kilmeade’s ‘rare on-air apology’ also served as Fox News’ response to the controversy
-
Russian drone tests Romania as Trump spinsSpeed Read Trump is ‘resisting congressional plans to impose newer and tougher penalties on Russia’s energy sector’
-
Trump renews push to fire Cook before Fed meetingSpeed Read The push to remove Cook has ‘quickly become the defining battle in Trump’s effort to take control of the Fed’
