A Ghent jeweller who was given a 10-month suspended prison sentence by a lower court for shooting a burglar in his store could see that decision upheld by the Ghent Appellate Court if the prosecution has its way.
Calling for the original sentence to be upheld, the Office of the Public Prosecutor argued that there was no case of irresistible constraint or self-defence, as the defence had claimed
The defence argued for an acquittal, stating the jeweller had “lost his head.”
The incident took place in Oostakker, Ghent, at midday on 7 July 2018. Two armed men entered the store and seized jewellery but, although equipped with a Kalashnikov and a handgun, they did not fire. As they fled on a moped, the jeweller pursued them, firing four shots and fatally wounding one of the suspects.
The second man was sentenced to eight years in jail in 2021.
The Ghent Provincial Court decided that the jeweller had not acted in self-defence and sentenced him to a ten-month suspended prison term and an €800 fine in June 2023.
The defence lawyer said his client had experienced “irresistible constraint,” which had been acknowledged by a judicial review chamber but not by the provincial court.
The jeweller denied any intention to kill and appealed the court's decision.
