What happened?
The facts happened on Saturday, October 28, at the lawyer’s home in Eiland street in Sint-Lievens-Houtem. A man presented himself around 1:15 p.m. and shot the lawyer in the back. Her 22-year-old son, who tried to intervene, was also injured. He was able to leave the hospital after several operations.
Who was arrested?
The police arrested the first person on Wednesday as part of the investigation into the murder of Van Der Stichelen. It would be a person in his sixties. The police carried out a search of the man’s home in Vlierzele on Wednesday.
On Thursday evening it was announced that a second man had also been arrested. The police carried out a search of his home in Erondegem (Erpe-Mere). According to VTM News Both men had a remarkable amount of telephone contact after the murder of Van Der Stichelen.
What do we know about the suspects?
Little is currently known about both suspects. The first suspect is said to be a man who was under the lawyer’s custody. He is said to have expressed his dissatisfaction about Van Der Stichelen and her work on social media.
The second man is said to be a relative of the first suspect. It may be the brother-in-law of the man who was arrested on Wednesday. According to VRT NWS photos of the second man show striking similarities with the robot photo previously distributed by the police. Police and public prosecutor’s office will not comment for the time being.
How is the investigation proceeding? What does the interrogation of the first suspect reveal?
On Thursday morning, investigators from the judicial police conducted a search near the lawyer’s home and office. A nearby stream, among other things, was searched by divers. That would have yielded no results. The investigators were probably looking for the weapon with which Van Der Stichelen and her son were shot, but this has not been confirmed by the police and the public prosecutor’s office.
The first suspect was interrogated again by the federal police on Thursday. “He is cooperating with the investigation and it is also a very drastic experience for him,” says his lawyer Ercan Tok. “No decision has yet been made regarding an arraignment before the investigating judge.” During his first interrogation, the man insisted that he had nothing to do with Van Der Stichelen’s death.
What’s about to happen?
The investigating judge has until Friday afternoon to decide whether the first suspect will be brought to trial. The family member may also be brought before the investigating judge, who must decide whether both men will be arrested for the murder of Van Der Stichelen and the attempted murder of her son.
Tags: suspects arrested investigation murder lawyer Claudia Van Der Stichelen
