An argument that turned violent at 08:40 on Saturday morning resulted in the death of a 41-year-old man, reportedly a butcher. The incident took place at the public market in the Anderlecht Slaughterhouse (Anderlecht Abattoirs).
Both men were carrying butcher's knives since they were working in the abattoirs, Belga News Agency reports. The victim was born in 1981 and the suspect in 1979.
The victim died from the wounds of stabbings, says Sarah Frédérickx, spokesperson for the South police zone. “Police arrived while the man was still alive, but all help came too late and the victim died an hour later at about 09:40.”
The exact circumstances of the dispute are still unknown, but both men reportedly worked at the same butcher shop. It is said that the owner of the butchers tried to intervene and separate the two, getting injured too.
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The suspect has been arrested and is currently being interrogated by the South Police Zone squad.
An investigating judge has inspected the crime scene with a lab member and a forensic doctor. The suspect was handed over to the judge later on Saturday, the Brussels public prosecutor’s office confirmed.
A shock to the Abattoir
Paul Thielemans, spokesperson for Abattoir, says they have had a good and long-standing relationship with the shop where the incident took place.
"This is a very sad incident. The butcher shop also attracts a mixed crowd and there have never been any problems," Thielemans told De Standaard.
The butchers in question closed its doors on Saturday, while the rest of the market remained open. "The customers of the Slaughterhouses barely noticed the stabbing, also because the emergency services acted efficiently."
It is the first time in thirty years that the Abattoir has experienced something like this. "Of course, there have been accidents at work in the past, but an incident like this has never happened before. We are very upset."
