© rr
The investigation into the death of 4-year-old Dean Verberckmoes, whose body was found in Zeeland in the Netherlands on January 17, 2022, is in its final phase. This was learned from the Ghent public prosecutor’s office. There is no final claim yet, no referral to the court of assizes and certainly no indictment yet.
Source: BELGA
Yesterday at 7:35 PM
The body of Dean Verberckmoes was found on Monday, January 17, 2022 in the Netherlands near Neeltje Jans in the province of Zeeland. In the past, Dean stayed with the Belgian Dave De Kock and his Dutch girlfriend Romy W. in their home in the Kerkstraat in Sint-Gillis-Waas. He was supposed to stay with the couple for a night on January 12, the day on which De Kock and Dean Verberckmoes were last seen.
De Kock was arrested earlier in the day on January 17 in Meerkerk in the province of Utrecht. According to the investigation, De Kock crossed the border with the Netherlands on the night of Friday 14 to Saturday 15 January and left the boy’s body at Neeltje Jans in Zeeland on Saturday afternoon. The investigating judge in Dendermonde requested and obtained his surrender for the murder and kidnapping of Dean.
Romy W. was arrested on the night of January 17 to 18 during a search of the building in Sint-Gillis-Waas. She was also arrested on suspicion of murder and kidnapping, but Romy W. and De Kock made conflicting statements about Dean’s fate. The woman had stated at the beginning of the investigation that she had last seen Dean with Dave De Kock, and that she had nothing to do with his death. According to his Dutch lawyer, De Kock could only be accused of negligence and was not guilty of kidnapping or murder.
De Kock was sentenced to ten years in prison in 2010 for the fatal assault of 2-year-old Miguel from Ravels. The facts happened in 2008 and the man served the entire prison sentence, so that he was not further monitored after his release in 2018. He allegedly stated that Dean had fallen down the stairs and that he did not dare to call the emergency services because of his past.
De Kock and Romy W. have been in custody for two years. The investigation has been completed, but the indictment is still pending, Het Laatste Nieuws said on Wednesday. The investigation has yet to be finalized, the Ghent public prosecutor’s office responds. When it is ready, it is communicated to the Public Prosecution Service, which must decide on a final claim. According to HLN, it is almost certain that De Kock will be referred to the court of assizes for murder and kidnapping, but according to the court, that is far from being the case. Additional investigation may be requested and the case must still pass before the council chamber in Dendermonde, and then the Ghent indictment chamber. The indictment will only be drawn up once there is definitive clarity about a referral to assizes.
“I expect that the investigation is almost complete and that more clarity will emerge in the coming months,” says Jef Vermassen, the lawyer for Dean’s mother. “We have not yet had access to the file and we are waiting to see when the case will come before the council chamber.” The suspects’ lawyers could not be reached for comment.