A 14-year-old girl was “gang raped by up to 12 children aged 11 to 16” and screamed “stop” at her attackers, who used the 11-year-old as a lookout after spending the day at a fairground.

• The girl was “abused by the boys three times between April 2nd and 6th”

A young girl who was allegedly gang-raped by up to a dozen children aged 11 to 16 reportedly shouted “stop” to her attackers.

According to the public prosecutor’s office, the 14-year-old girl was abused three times by the group of boys between April 2nd and 6th during the Easter holidays.

The main suspect – the girl’s 14-year-old boyfriend – allegedly took the girl to a forested area called Kabouterbos in Kortrijk, West Flanders, Belgium, at around 6pm on April 2, after they had spent the day at a fairground.

Once there, the friend is said to have raped his young partner in front of the others before “loaning” her to his friends to sexually abuse her as well, while the youngest of the boys, an 11-year-old, was used as a lookout, it says To report.

Prosecutors arrested 10 suspects between the ages of 11 and 16 – all boys of North African or Somali descent, according to local media – and took them away for questioning. However, new reports suggest that up to a dozen boys were involved in the attack.

Interrogation revealed that the girl shouted “stop” as the teenagers attacked her. A 14-year-old suspect said she grimaced and he “saw she was in pain,” local news outlet HLN reported.

The girl reportedly said little during the attack other than telling her attackers to stop. She also appeared dizzy, turned pale, and her eyelids seemed to close.

Citing “well-informed sources,” Belgian newspaper Nieuwsblad described the boyfriend as a “loverboy boy” who deliberately allowed his friends to abuse his young partner.

“Loverboy,” in this case, is a term that describes traffickers who typically try to make their young victims fall in love with them.

However, the boy denies that he “lent” his girlfriend to the other teenagers and his lawyer said that “further investigation is required to establish the facts.”

Nieuwsblad said the prosecutor’s office had found “reprehensible behavior” by the suspects and “vindictive facts,” citing sources close to the investigation who said the alleged perpetrators had shown “a complete lack of awareness of norms.”

The girl is believed to have returned to the forest – a popular spot for mountain bikers – where she was twice raped, tortured and abused by the gang of minors while under her boyfriend’s “powerful” influence, local media reported.

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The group took turns abusing the victim and, according to Nieuwsblad, everyone participated “to a greater or lesser extent.”

The victim is said to have been raped by at least four of the boys and touched by the others standing in a circle around her, while others filmed the attacks with their smartphones.

The footage and images of the alleged attack were also shared on social media, reportedly via Snapchat – an instant messaging app that allows users to easily share images and videos. None of the group urged their friends to stop the abuse, sources said.

The investigation was carried out by the West Flanders Public Prosecutor’s Office in the strictest secrecy to avoid family members of the victim or members of the public knowing the identities of those involved.

Although the alleged attack occurred in early April, the girl did not come forward for several days for fear of telling her parents and the police. The police were only able to arrest the suspects on April 25th.

A total of ten boys were arrested. Six of the suspects were placed in a closed institution while the other four were placed under house arrest.

They have since been questioned – all at the same time and separately so that investigators can compare all statements.

Citing his sources, Nieuwsblad said that many of the boys’ statements were contradictory and several suspects blamed each other.

Some of the six minors housed in the institution appeared in juvenile court on Wednesday afternoon. It was reported that two of them were released on conditional terms.

Nieuwsblad reported that four other minors are currently in custody – including the 14-year-old friend, who has apparently been declared the main suspect.

Prosecutors are now working to find out to what extent each suspect was involved in the attack on the 14-year-old girl or whether they were bystanders.

Tom Janssens of the public prosecutor’s office said that due to the age of everyone involved, their identities were rarely discussed publicly.

He confirmed that ten suspects had been identified and arrested and that all were minors. “Because the perpetrators are so young, we don’t reveal much information about their identities,” Janssens told The Brussels Times.

According to the friend’s lawyer, her client has denied the reported events. “My client also wants the truth to come out and the matter to be thoroughly investigated,” lawyer Nur Demirtas told local media.

“He understands that he is now locked up, but this is also traumatic for him.” This is also very difficult for his parents, wealthy people who tried to give their son a good upbringing. “They don’t understand how this could have happened,” Demirtas said.

“I also notice that the suspects of such crimes are becoming younger and younger. This is very worrying.”

Lawyer Kelly De Caluwé, defending a 16-year-old suspect of Somali origin, said the minors were “all interrogated at the same time and investigators will now review the statements to find out the truth.”

“These are terrible facts,” she said. “The question is how it is possible that these children have lost all sense of norms.” What should we do with this?

“How are we going to solve this? This question should not only be asked of the juvenile judge, but of society as a whole. I have never experienced such facts in my fifteen-year career.”

Caluwé said her client said things he didn’t mean when questioned and asked for a re-investigation.

“I asked for a re-investigation because he said things that were inconsistent with what he meant because of the language barrier,” she said, according to Nieuwsblad.

“For me he is not a rapist. Although he realizes that something very wrong has happened. This realization comes gradually.’

“For me he is not a rapist. Although he realizes that something very wrong has happened. This realization comes gradually.’

Kortrijk Mayor Vincent Van Quickenborne said he was shocked when he first learned about the case, which he had known about behind closed doors “for some time.”

“The public prosecutor’s office does not allow me to say anything about the facts of the case, but I have been aware of the investigation for a long time,” he said.

“These are shitty acts for which there are no words.” I say that not only as a politician, but also as a father of three small children.”

In Belgium, the age of criminal responsibility is 18, which means that the alleged sex offenders were brought before a juvenile judge and were likely included in a personal rehabilitation program in juvenile facilities.

However, given the exceptional nature of the case, it is possible that the 16-year-old in question will be dealt with under adult criminal law.

Meanwhile, the victim is receiving specialist medical care after his ordeal.

In Belgium, it is possible to imprison children aged 12 and over for long periods if they are found guilty of rape or gang rape. Since 2022, criminals aged 16 and over who have committed such crimes can be tried as adults.

East Flanders Justice Minister Zuhal Demir, who has pushed for tougher juvenile crime laws, said parents of children who commit such crimes “must be held accountable.”

“You simply cannot address this kind of violence with lower sentences,” she said, according to The Brussels Times.

“Such (offenders) must be removed from the streets and their parents must be held accountable.” “Juvenile judges should make greater and more comprehensive use of the recent tightening of juvenile criminal law.”

Frédéric Declercq, professor of forensic psychology, explained to De Morgen why the 14-year-old girl probably took a while to come forward after the incident in early April: “Sex crimes are always under-reported, regardless of whether they are “It is a gang rape or gang rape.” an isolated case. “It is a well-known fact that victims usually feel more guilt than the perpetrators.”

“It is also very shameful to report crimes.” What plays a role for both female and male victims is stigma. You are no longer who you always were. “If you come out, you’re a rape victim.”

A hearing will be held in juvenile court on May 24 to decide what will happen to the underage suspects.