Horror scenes. 15-year-old teenager doused with petrol and set on fire by a group of minors: 'I thought they were fireworks'
An extremely violent incident on Friday evening on the banks of the canal in Anderlecht, Belgium, shocked the local community. A 15-year-old teenager was doused with a flammable liquid and set on fire by a group of minors. Neighbors heard screams and saw flames, initially thinking they were fireworks. It wasn't until seconds later that they realized a child was on fire.
A 15-year-old teenager was doused with gasoline and set on fire PHOTO: Archive
“Suddenly, the flames rose several meters above his head“, said a witness nearby. In this case, a 16-year-old boy was arrested and placed in a juvenile detention center.
The tragedy occurred on Friday evening, shortly before 19:00, in an area located between the Porte de Paris residential complex and the Biestebroeck quay, along the Brussels–Charleroi canal, in Anderlecht. Several residents noticed an unusual commotion: a group of young people had gathered in the area, shouting and shouting were heard, followed by several explosions.
“At first I thought it was fireworks. But suddenly I saw flames”said a local. At that time, no one immediately realized what was happening, reports the local publication 7sur7.
At Le Gentleman cafe, located near the scene of the incident, several residents of the neighborhood were having a drink on Friday evening. The noise made them come outside.
“For a moment I thought the boy was holding a torch, but in fact he was burning”
Thierry, one of the witnesses, describes the scenes as unimaginable. “I saw a group of young people. There was a lot of noise, so we went out to see what was going on. That boy – I clearly say 'boy', because he was just a child – was running in all directions, screaming. It was terrible. It made me sick. I've never seen anything like it.”
Another witness spoke of how quickly the situation degenerated. “At first it was just a little light. Then suddenly flames shot up a few feet away above his head. At least three meters. For a moment I thought the boy was holding a torch, but in fact he was burning. His clothes were on fire and he was trying to pull them off“.
He jumped into the canal to save himself. He has burns on a third of his body
In a desperate attempt to save himself, the teenager ran towards the canal. “The fact that he still had this reflex is incredible”says a witness. The short distance between the quay and the water allowed him to quickly jump into the channel. The witnesses, and then the intervention teams, tried to get him out of the water as quickly as possible.
The investigation later determined that the boy had been doused with a flammable liquid. “He suffered severe burns“, confirmed Mélanie Geeraerts, spokeswoman for the Public Prosecutor's Office in Halle-Vilvorde. Her legs were particularly affected.
The 15-year-old teenager was transferred to the major burns center of the military hospital in Neder-over-Heembeek. His condition was initially of concern, but is now stable. Doctors estimate that about a third of his body surface was burned.
A 16-year-old minor, arrested. The investigation is ongoing
The exact circumstances of the incident remain unclear. The investigation, carried out by the Brussels-South police area, aims to establish the reason for the aggression and the role of each person involved. All tracks are taken into account.
A 16-year-old from the Dendermonde region was detained and placed in the De Grubbe center by the decision of the juvenile court judge, the East Flanders Public Prosecutor's Office confirmed. The prosecutor's office in Halle-Vilvorde talks about the possible involvement of several minors and mentions two other suspects, whose exact role is to be determined.
On Saturday, three other people were initially detained by Brussels-South police, but were found to be unrelated to the incident and released.
Neighborhood considered quiet, but with security problems
The victim is a 15-year-old boy from Anderlecht. The area where the attack took place is described by locals as relatively quiet, surrounded by residential blocks. However, they have been reporting problems related to drug trafficking for a long time.
“They've been selling drugs here for a while. In the evenings, cars and scooters are constantly pulling up in the bridge area a little further. Sometimes it's like a drive-in“, says a woman from the neighborhood.
Residents say the police have intervened firmly in the past, but attention has since shifted to other areas. It is not yet known if Friday night's violence is related to drug trafficking. “I've never seen such violence here before”say the people of the area.
The police returned to the scene of the tragedy on Saturday morning, and the Prosecutor's Office emphasizes that, for the moment, all hypotheses remain open.
