We know more about the disappearance of Valentin Footman, the 23-year-old from Incourt in Walloon Brabant, which occurred overnight from Friday to Saturday in Ghent.
According to our information, the young man was in the presence of three friends when he wanted to enter Kompass, a nightclub popular with revelers, before being turned down by security for having drunk too much. His friends entered the club despite everything, leaving Valentin alone.
Investigators examined CCTV camera recordings on Wednesday to trace the route that Valentin Footman could have taken, without success. A wanted notice was published Monday by the federal police in order to find his trace. As of Monday morning, dozens of police officers were mobilized to inspect the banks of the Nieuwe Dokken and a helicopter flew over the area where Valentin Footman was reported missing.
On Tuesday, three boats equipped with sonars and two teams of divers were also deployed. On Wednesday, after examining images from CCTV cameras in the neighborhood, the police had still not found any elements allowing the investigation to progress.
“We started the excavations again this Thursday in the docks of the old port with the divers of the civil protection of Crisnée and Braaschaat”, explains Alain Remue, director of the missing persons cell of the federal police. “We are inspecting the surroundings of all boats moored in the canal to make sure there is nothing underneath.”
This Thursday, his body was found in the Houtdok, our colleagues from HLN tell us.
“The disappearances systematically concern boys”
Since the creation of the cell for missing persons 28 years ago, around thirty fatal disappearances have been reported after festive events. “It is always about boys who, very often, do not know the surroundings. Most of the time, they will urinate in the canal and slip, thus becoming trapped. This happens everywhere, from Ghent to Bruges via Louvain-la-Neuve or Vilvoorde, in festive places located near water points”explains Alain Remue.
Alain Remue insists on the fact that it is advisable to systematically take care of his friends who find themselves in too tipsy states in order to avoid such tragedies. “Please never leave any of your friends on their own. We go out together, we come back together. It’s the golden rule!”he continues.