Daniel Bellens denies being the author of the violent rape, committed the night of August 22 to 23, 2017 at Marie Delhoux’s home on rue du Pied d’eau in Ronquières. He also contests the murder of the octogenarian. His lawyers argued for his acquittal. “We plead that he did not commit this theft and that he is not the author of this murder”, declared Me Lauvaux.
“Today you judge a pariah, a metic, a gypsy”, declared Me Fivez, at the start of his pleading. The lawyer refers to the life story of Daniel Bellens, who spent a good part of his life in prison. “However, he has the right to have his words heard. If any doubt should exist, you must acknowledge it”.
Me Fivez gives no credibility to the words of Marie Tenret, co-accused. The latter declared that she had driven Daniel Bellens, a few days after his birthday (August 17), to the Braine region. However, she hesitates between Braine-le-Comte and Braine-l’Alleud. “Either, she speaks of the day of the events, with numerous inconsistencies. Either, she is talking about another day, passing through Braine-l’Alleud which is on the road linking Charleroi to Brussels. Nothing in the investigation came to shake what Daniel Bellens declared here and during the investigation”, he said.
The Renault Clio
On August 22, at 11:45 p.m., a Renault Clio was filmed in rue du Pied d’eau. Me Fivez notes that Thierry Auspert, who spent six years in prison with Daniel Bellens and who lived near the victim’s house in the nineties, had this model of car.
Hainaut Assizes – The Attorney General demands the guilt of Daniel Bellens and Marie Tenret for theft and murder
According to the lawyer, the former detainee is no stranger to the facts, he would even be omnipresent in this case. “Would it be fanciful to imagine that Mr. Bellens tried to find Thierry, to whom he had given drawings? I’m not saying he found it, but he looked for it”.
However, the two men could not meet each other due to the conditions of their release. Questioned as a witness, Thierry Auspert declared that he respected his release conditions to the letter and that he had not heard from Didier Bellens since 2008.
The work of a woman
Me Fivez is certain that Daniel Bellens’ girlfriend could not see any blood stains on the Gypsy’s pants, as she declared, because they were not stained. “He did not participate in this theft, and it was not he who hit Madame Delhoux. It was a woman who assaulted her that evening. The proof is that after the attack, Marie Delhoux was afraid of women”, he said.
Me Lauvaux recognizes that the Bellens family has exhausted the prosecutors, the judges, but also the lawyers in Charleroi, “but there is a principle: we do not judge by the face, the life course, the criminal record. We only judge on evidence, not assumptions”.
The theft is disputed. Me Lauvaux notes that the loot remains undetermined, even if the court specified, in the questionnaire which will be given to the jurors, the theft of an undetermined quantity of jewelry. “The family spoke of an Egyptian gold cartouche, of which we have no trace, of coins with the Atomium and the Olympic games, a specific necklace with crystal beads, a bracelet, a chain… very particular jewelry, some of which were found”, notes the lawyer.
According to the lawyer, the jewelry offered by Daniel Bellens to a fence in Charleroi are family heirlooms. “Daniel Bellens’ companion, confronted with a photo of a piece of jewelry worn by the victim, speaks of an object of the same type”. Daniel Bellens’ daughter said she found a ring and bracelet in her wardrobe. “Confronted with the photos, she will say that it looks like it”, continues the lawyer.
Messages and searches
Violence is also contested. The criminal lawyer notes that the lesions are on the right side of the victim’s face, even though Daniel Bellens is right-handed. Like his colleague, he maintains that the blows were carried out by a woman.
For the lawyer, it is possible that the DNA found on the sleeves of the pajamas of the victim, “poor quality” is not that of his client. “It is a secondary transfer, possible according to experts, and not direct”, insists the lawyer.
Me Lauvaux notes that Daniel Bellens’ sister, Bernadette, went to find Marie Tenret before her arrest, “to ask him not to involve his son Kadir Bellens, who could also have been thrown out by Aubin Bellens (son of Daniel) out of revenge following a heist in Cuesmes”. The cousins, currently detained, do not get along. For the defense, there are enough suspects in the Bellens clan capable of committing this type of act.
Regarding telephony, the lawyer believes that the police only brought out the messages that interested them, among the thousands of SMS exchanges between Daniel Bellens and his partner, giving the impression that he is looking for a stunt. “These messages may be shady, but they have no connection to what happened next”, says the lawyer.
Assizes Hainaut – Daniel Bellens, the wolf tried to become a lamb after his release
Searching for gold on the Internet? “He bought a gold ring a few weeks ago”. Resale of stolen jewelry in Charleroi? “He gives his identity card to the buyer. It’s the height for a thief”, laughs Me Lauvaux.
For the defense of Daniel Bellens, there is doubt about his participation in the violent robbery, committed in Ronquières on the night of August 22 to 23, 2017, to the detriment of a vulnerable old woman.
Finally, regarding the murder, the moral element is lacking, believes Me Lauvaux. “There is no fracture on the face, nor on the body, nor any blunt object. There were blows to a woman who had aggressive reactions, given her state of health. The intention was not to kill. If the perpetrator had wanted to kill her, he would have taken a knife, or a cushion, or a belt, and he would have made sure of death before leaving the scene.”, he pleads.
Marie Delhoux died a week later in hospital.
