The suspect who went on a deadly stabbing spree at a Belgian day care center is also thought to have killed an elderly woman 10 days ago and had plans on him to attack two more nurseries, a prosecutor said Monday.
Christian Du Four said police now believe the man they are holding for Friday's day care massacre in Dendermonde may also have stabbed to death a 73-year-old woman who lived nearby on Jan. 16.
"There are very clear indications of links between the murders in Dendermonde and the death of the elderly woman," said Du Four.
Investigators had been unable to find a motive for woman's slaying.
Last Friday, a knife-wielding man killed two babies and a caregiver at the Fairyland day care center in Dendermonde, a town 18 miles west of Brussels. He also seriously wounded 12 others, including 10 young children, in a rampage so bloody it left rescue workers shaken.
Suspect Kim De Gelder, 20, was arrested the same day when he calmly rode his bike fleeing the scene. Witnesses said when the elderly woman was murdered the previous Friday, they also saw a man calmly riding away into the night on a bike.
Authorities say the suspect is refusing to cooperate with the investigation.
Plan for more attacks
Belgium is still trying to come grips with the attack. Day care centers and schools reopened for a new week Monday but many parents were still anxious and many small students cried when they discussed the tragedy.
Newspapers carried full-page pictures of a thin, longhaired suspect looking straight into the lens with an angelic smile on his face.
Du Four said matters could have gotten a lot worse if police had not caught the suspect shortly afterward at a nearby supermarket. When he was detained they found a knife, an ax and more makeup, as well as detailed plans of two more daycare centers in Dendermonde with equally innocent names like "Sunshine" and "Toddler's Land."
The prosecutor's office said although the suspect carefully laid out plans for a murderous rampage involving even more toddlers, a motive for the slayings remains elusive.
The suspect is scheduled to attend a court hearing on Tuesday. He was charged on the basis of identifications by witnesses at the daycare center.