The Walloon Brabant Correctional Court on Friday sentenced Hicham K., Mounir B., and Fouad B. to six years in prison on charges related to an explosive attack on a bpost cash machine in Virginal, Ittre, on 25 February 2022.
The trio set off three separate charges at the location, causing significant material damage, but failed to steal any banknotes.
The court also imposed sentences of three years, two years, and 15 months on seven other defendants, while a woman who agreed to hide a vehicle used in the crime was given a one-year electronic monitoring sentence.
Investigators were able to track down the culprits owing largely to the powerful vehicles they used during the crime and prior reconnaissance efforts: an Audi RS5 and various Mercedes vehicles rented under false names abroad.
The perpetrators’ activities were international in nature. Many of them were based in the Netherlands, while some were also suspected of committing the same type of crimes in Germany.
In court, some of the defendants admitted to participating in the Virginal incident, but others denied involvement despite the evidence. None of the defendants admitted to placing the explosive charges.
Immediately after sentencing, and at the request of the public prosecutor, the court ordered the arrest of Hicham K., who had given a partial confession, and Fouad B., who was absent throughout the proceedings.
