This Tuesday opened in Bruges the trial of the driver who attacked a couple on the E40 motorway with an iron bar. He presented his apologies, which were refused by the victims still deeply marked by this attack.
It was a year ago, Jozef Mertens and Anne-Marie Heusdens were attacked on the E40 motorway between Bruges and Ostend. A driver stopped in front of them, got out of his vehicle with an iron bar and ran towards the couple’s car.
This Tuesday morning, the trial opened in Bruges. The two victims, Jozef and Anne-Marie, saw their attacker for the first time. They still have nightmares about it. “With my wife, we still talk about it…every day. And every time I take this road, which I often do because I work in the region, I find myself confronted with this. It’s difficult. .. And for my wife too, it’s difficult”says Jozef Mertens.
The 41-year-old man is being prosecuted for attempted murder, vicious obstruction of traffic and threatening with a weapon. “My client is in therapy, he has already made progress but there is still a long way to go”informs Toon Deschepper, the defendant’s lawyer.
A year after the events, the defendant speaks: “I feel a lot of shame and I want to apologize”, he said. But for Jozef and Anne-Marie, it’s too late. “We could have died. Anyone who doesn’t have my experience on the road could have stayed there”says Jozef, who is a driving instructor.
The judgment is expected next year. Until then, the aggressor is prohibited from driving.