43-year-old Rachid H. from Brussels was sentenced on Friday to three years in prison and a 2,400 euro fine. The criminal court of Antwerp found it proven that he had set a fire at the Delhaize branch in Antwerp South last year. The man has always denied any involvement.
Several shopping carts that were in the entrance hall of the Delhaize on Museumstraat were set on fire on September 21 around 8 a.m. CCTV footage showed a man and woman dressed in black pouring a liquid on the shopping trolleys. The woman then threw a lit cigarette at the carts, which immediately caught fire. Several witnesses had seen the woman walking towards a Volkswagen Golf. Someone had also memorized part of the license plate. Analysis of the ANPR camera images led to the car of Rachid H., who was arrested that same day. He denied any involvement. According to the prosecutor, his appearance matched that of the male perpetrator in the images. The readout of his mobile phone also showed that he had searched for the terms ‘fire’ and ‘flammable products’ in Google and his Google Maps was still open on Museumstraat.The affected branch was one of the stores that Delhaize still managed and was part of the social unrest at the time. However, Rachid H. turned out to have no connection with the supermarket chain, which means that the motive remains a matter of speculation, according to the prosecutor. The female suspect could not be identified. The court found Rachid H.’s guilt proven. He must pay Delhaize 15,265 euros in material and 250 euros in moral damages.
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