Dutroux co-accused acquitted

2004-06-17 20:10

Arlon, Belgium - The jury in the Marc Dutroux trial on Thursday acquitted Michel Nihoul, accused of being the lynchpin of a paedophile gang, of any involvement in the abductions of several girls.

The 12 jurors had been ordered by the three-judge panel to reconsider after initially delivering a hung verdict on the 63-year-old convicted conman.

They found that Nihoul was innocent of any involvement in the abductions of six girls, four of whom died. Dutroux murdered two of the girls and another two starved to death.

The acquittal demolishes claims by Dutroux that he was the hapless fall-guy for a shadowy gang of paedophiles led by Nihoul.

- SAPA