The Charleroi Criminal Court has sentenced a man to one year in prison for subjecting members of the royal family and cabinet ministers to threats and harassment.
The defendant was found guilty of harassing and threatening King Philippe, Princess Elisabeth, former Defence Minister Ludivine Dedonder, and Defence Minister Theo Francken, via Facebook.
The prosecution had sought a ten-month prison term, allowing for the possibility of a suspended sentence. However, the court opted for a harsher penalty.
The defendant was arrested in January after being reported for multiple threatening posts online. According to the prosecution, the accused called for Theo Francken’s death, and urged Belgian Muslims to target him.
During the trial, the defendant admitted to the accusations, describing his words as “ridiculous” and claiming they were not meant to be taken seriously.
“It was vulgar and inappropriate; I never believed anyone read or paid attention to what I wrote," he said.
The defence called for his acquittal, insisting that the threats were not intended to bother the victims, but the court ruled otherwise.
