One of the suspects in the murder of a gay man earlier this year escaped on Saturday from the institution where he was being held by order of the juvenile court.
A spokesperson for the Flemish agency Opgroeien confirmed to De Standaard that the minor suspect escaped via the roof with another youngster.
A car was waiting to take them away, and the two have been reported to authorities.
The suspect is one of three teenagers being investigated for the murder of 42-year-old David Polfliet.
The murder took place in a park in the East Flemish city of Beveren, near Antwerp, where the three teenagers are thought to have lured Polfliet under the pretense of a date arranged using the gay dating app Grindr.
Two of the boys were 17 years old and one was 16 at the time of the murder, which is being treated as a hate crime.
The escape happened at the Community Institution for Special Youth Care in Wingene on Saturday night, according to HLN.
A spokesperson said that the staff of the institution immediately searched the area without success.
“Everyone - police, prosecutors, the institution's team and the youngsters' friends and parents - is involved in finding them as quickly as possible,” the spokesperson said.
The institution is not a formal prison, and HLN reported that there have been multiple escapes over the years.
UPDATE: The suspect has been found.
The Brussels Times
