AN IRISH family yesterday spoke of their distress at discovering they had once lived in a house in Belgium previously rented by the convicted rapist at the centre of an investigation into child abduction - and murder, writes Ann Cahill.
Tralee born Mr Dermot Brosnan and his Belgian born wife, Ms Claire Dupas, rented a local authority house in the Goutroux suburb of Charleroi for two years in 1986 and 1987. The previous occupant had been Marc Dutroux.
The house in the La Cite complex is just 6 kms from the house in Sars La Buissiere where Dutroux lived and where police at the weekend discovered three bodies - including those of two little girls, Julie Lejeune and Melissa Russo.
Ms Dupas said: "When I heard the news about the children, I said to Dermot it was very like the man who had stayed in the house in Goutroux before we moved in."
Mr Brosnan added: "It's just an extraordinary coincidence. We are shocked at the enormity of what is happening out there. We don't even want to think about the things that might have gone on in our house before we moved in."
A few weeks after they moved into the house in 1986, the couple - who now have two children, Stephanie (10) and Alison (8) - were visited by police from the Belgian Vice Squad (BSR).
"The police wanted to know if we had discovered anything unusual in the house. In fact we had not but they then asked us to forward any letters or magazines which might arrive for this man Dutroux," said Ms Dupas.
Although they moved back to Ireland in 1987, the couple holidayed in Belgium last year - just 10 kms from Sars La Bussieres.
"We were back over in Belgiumvisiting Claire's mother and everywhere we saw the signs up in four languages appealing for help to find the missing girls and Claire's mother advised us not allow Stephanie or Alison out of our sight," said Mr Brosnan.