| Brabant Killings | |
|---|---|
| Part of Les Années de plomb (Years of Lead) | |
 Gendarmerie-distributed poster with the likenesses of the gang's members | |
| Location | Brabant (mostly), also in East Flanders, Hainaut, and Namur, Belgium. On one occasion, in the town of Maubeuge, France. |
| Date | 31 December 1981– 9 November 1985 |
| Target | Delhaize grocery stores, arms and other retailers, motorists, etc. |
Attack type | Serial killing, mass shootings, robberies |
| Weapons | Two riot guns (possibly Winchester 1200s and/or a Franchi SPAS 12[1][2] One .45 Ingram MAC 10 submachine gun[3] One MP5SD5[4] 7.65mm Ortgies Semi-Automatic Pistol |
| Deaths | 28 (including a Belgian communal policeman and a gendarme) |
| Injured | 22 (including 2 French gendarmes, 2 Belgian communal police officers, and a Belgian gendarme) |
| Perpetrators | Alleged to have been career criminals and off-duty gendarmes associated with the far-right Westland New Post and VMO |
No. of participants | 4 to 10 (according to Jean Depretre, the case's former lead prosecutor)[5] |
| Motive | Possibly far-right extremism |
| Inquiry | Various prosecutor-led investigations and a later parliamentary inquiry |
| Accused | None living are known to be under investigation.[6] |
| Convicted | None |
| Convictions | None |
The Brabant killers[a] are a group of unidentified criminals responsible for a series of violent attacks that mainly occurred in the Belgian province of Brabant between 1982 and 1985.[7]
A total of 28 people died and 22 were injured. The actions of the gang, believed to consist of a core of three men, made it Belgium's most notorious unsolved crime spree. The active participants were known as The Giant (French: Le Géant; a tall man who may have been the leader); the Killer (Le Tueur; the main shooter) and the Old Man (Le Vieux; a middle aged man who drove). The identities and whereabouts of the "Brabant killers" are unknown.
Although significant resources are still dedicated to the case, the most recent arrests are of the now-retired original senior detectives themselves, for alleged evidence tampering.[8]
The gang abruptly ceased their activities in 1985. The ensuing chaotic investigation failed to catch them or even make serious inroads into solving the case. This led to a parliamentary inquiry and public discussion, both of which revolved around the possibility that the gang members were Belgian or foreign state security elements either carrying out covert missions (disguising targeted assassinations) or conducting political terrorism.
The investigation into the case was officially closed on 28 June 2024.[9]
- ^ "Privacy settings". myprivacy.medialaan.be. Archived from the original on 9 March 2021. Retrieved 29 June 2019.
- ^ "Riot Gun (Page 4) — Bewijsstukken — Bende van Nijvel". www.bendevannijvel.com. Archived from the original on 8 March 2021. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
- ^ Bende van Nijvel (29 April 2018). "VRT-journaal schetst een overzicht van de Bende van Nijvel". Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 20 June 2019 – via YouTube.
- ^ "Andere : Bende van Nijvel". 10 May 2014. Archived from the original on 28 May 2019. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
- ^ Miller, Judith; Times, Special to The New York (24 November 1985). "Belgium Is Shaken by Bombs and 'Crazy Killers'". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 9 July 2019. Retrieved 1 August 2019.
- ^ "The Brabant Killers (Update #2)". YouTube. 21 March 2019. Retrieved 11 February 2022.
- ^ "'Crazy Brabant Killers': Brussels murder mystery 'clue'". BBC News. 24 October 2017. Archived from the original on 3 February 2021. Retrieved 22 March 2021.
- ^ "'Crazy Brabant Killers': ex-gendarme arrested on suspicion of hiding evidence". the Guardian. 24 January 2019. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
- ^ "Tueurs du Brabant : fin de l'enquête, les familles des victimes ne cachent pas leur incompréhension". RTBF (in French). Retrieved 6 July 2024.
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