Six of the seven suspected members of the Brussels gang that imprisoned and forced a French minor into prostitution during December 2019 will be detained for one month before their trials.
The Brussels council chamber decided on Wednesday that the pre-trial detention period of three suspected members would be extended by one month, following in the footsteps of a court decision earlier in the week relating to three other suspects of the gang who will similarly be detained for one month before their trial takes place, the Brussels public prosecutor confirms.
The seventh and final suspected gang member is expected to come before the Brussels council chamber on Friday, writes BX1.
Two Brussels rappers are reportedly among the seven suspected members of the gang, with authorities saying they all gang members could face several years in prison if they are found guilty.
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After purchasing a 16-year-old French girl from her boyfriend for a fee of €2,000 sometime in late November or early December, a suspected Brussels-based gang imprisoned the minor in a basement in Uccle and a hotel in Ixelles. The gang made a profile for the 16-year-old girl on a prostitution site and forced her to have sex with 'customers' for a fee of €150 per hour.
After a friend in France, where the girl had been living prior to November when she ran away, noticed a photograph of the missing friend on a prostitution website, the police were notified and between the night of 4 January and the early hours of the following morning, Brussels police rescued the young French girl.
The first suspect of the gang was arrested on 4 January and the second and third were arrested on 5 January. The fourth, fifth and sixth suspects were arrested on 11 January and the seventh and final suspect was arrested on 13 January.
Evie McCullough
The Brussels Times
