#260 August 29th, 2022 [Le Monstre]

25 years ago on June 24, 1995, two eight-year-old Belgian girls vanished while playing outside in the neighbourhood of Liège, in the east of Belgium.

Julie Lejeune and Mélissa Russo were never seen again.

These disappearances were one of a few punctuation points that litter the case of Le Monstre – the Belgian serial killer and kidnapper who terrorized the tiny European country in the 1980s and 90s. What’s more? This monster – Marc Dutroux – has known and unknown accomplices who walk freely in the world today.

A couple of months after the two girls disappeared, two other girls, this time teenagers, went missing after attending a hypnotist show and catching the last tram home. The disappearance of An Marchal and Eefje Lambrecks put police on the path to a brothel in Blankenberge named Hotel Brazil. The owner of Hotel Brazil ended up in the wind and was never heard from again despite the effort of authorities in Belgium and Germany.

With that, the investigation stalled even further.

Remarkably, the police would also be the cause of blunder after blunder; only to be outmatched by the prosecutorial failures for previous crimes. This let Dutroux walk the streets despite no signs of reform; free to repeat his crimes.

Le Monstre chronicles the crimes of a psychopath. There's no other word to describe the subject of this podcast. Even though host Matt Graves pays homage to the victims as best as he can, you can't help but be drawn back to the absolute depravity of the man behind the Dutroux Affair.

As you listen in, there will be moments where you pick your jaw up off the floor. Preparing you for this now won't lessen the blow of what you hear, either. The crimes committed by Dutroux and his accomplices are disturbing and ultimately what brought 400,000 Belgians to take to the streets.

As the details unfold you may even lose track of just how complex the crimes and their investigations were. Acknowledging that, Matt Graves anchors everything in fact with helpful summaries that bookend his in-depth storytelling.

There's no way to ease into Le Monstre but there's no denying that it deserves a follow.

Have a listen and let us know what you think.

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