Karel Van Noppen murder case
Coordinates: 51 ° 16 ′ 0 ″ N , 4 ° 47 ′ 0 ″ E
The murder of Karel Van Noppen is the killing of the Belgian official Karel Van Noppen , who investigated illegal livestock farming practices of farmers and agricultural entrepreneurs in Belgium and was murdered on February 20, 1995 in Wechelderzande . His death subsequently attracted public attention. Van Noppen was posthumously honored with the Belgian Prijs voor de Democratie (Prize for Democracy).
The "hormone mafia"
The addition of growth hormones to the cattle feed can increase the profit per livestock between 10% and 100%. The use of such hormones was banned in the European Union back in 1989. Driven by the prospect of big profits, one could subsequently observe the increased incidence of organized crime, so-called "hormone mafias" in the industry. This was a particular problem in Belgium, after numerous colleagues of Van Noppen were exposed to threats and ultimately even attempted murder.
The murder case
On February 20, 1995, the 43-year-old Karel Van Noppen, who was then investigating the phenomenon described above, was shot three times on his doorstep in Wechelderzande , a district of the municipality of Lille in the Belgian province of Antwerp . The killing sparked a wave of indignation across Belgium. The general dismay was shown, among other things, in a candle procession led by Karel Van Noppen's wife in Flanders, as well as in the form of loud demands for greater control and regulation of cattle breeding. In 2002 Albert Barrez, Carl de Schutter and Germain Daenen were each sentenced to 25 years in prison for their involvement in the murder case, while another man, Alex Vercauteren, received life imprisonment.
various
The Belgian crime drama Bullhead is based on this incident and had its festival premiere at the Berlinale in February 2011 and its cinema premiere in Belgium on February 2, 2011. The film also received an Oscar nomination.
Individual evidence
- ↑ A cabinet full of files about Belgium's hormone mafia, accessed on berliner-zeitung.de on June 14, 2014
- ^ The Independent - Why the mafia is into your beef
- ^ The Independent - Belgians march in memory of 'hormone mafia' victim
- ↑ BBC News - Belgian hormone killers jailed
- ↑ Bullhead in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- ↑ "Bullhead" (start date November 24, 2011 (2 hours 9 min.)) Accessed on filmstarts.de on June 14, 2014
- ↑ BBC News - Bullhead: Oscar contender rooted in real Belgian murder