Manhunt for Jürgen Conings is still unsuccessful: 250 officers, 90 soldiers and armored cars continue their search

Watch: long procession of police cars involved in manhunt for Jürgen Conings

The manhunt for the heavily armed professional soldier Jürgen Conings did not yield anything for the time being last night, even though around five o’clock this morning, 13 police combis suddenly fired into action simultaneously. They left their position at the Salamander camping residence park and headed in the direction of As, it reports The last news.

All attention is still focused on the Hoge Kempen National Park on Thursday morning, where a large police force and the army are on the spot. Yesterday evening a few armored army vehicles were deployed in the late hours, after six bangs were heard around 6:30. It is not clear whether those were effective shots.

The E314 between Maasmechelen and Genk-East towards Lummen was closed as a precaution. The highway runs right through the National Park and can be crossed via the ecoduct. If the manhunt were to be ramped up, the highway could also become potentially dangerous.

Since yesterday afternoon, the Hoge Kempen National Park has been closed for a manhunt to Jürgen Conings. In total there are 250 men on the leg. They do a sweeping in three zones of the nature reserve, where it may be entrenched. In the meantime, reinforcements have also arrived from no fewer than 90 soldiers. The press people present were advised not to move and to remain grouped.

Armored cars and other police vehicles have been scanning the park since yesterday afternoon, last night additional armored army vehicles were added. A heavily armed team was sent into the forest: a dozen masked men in civilian clothes, with body armor and automatic rifles. Special forces and the demining service also arrived on the scene. The latter was also called in on Tuesday because Conings had attached a hand grenade with wires in his abandoned car. It could have exploded if the doors were opened.

The Hoge Kempen is a vast park where someone could easily spend days without meeting anyone. It is currently prohibited to enter the park. People who are in the area are advised to follow the guidelines of the police

Who is the Jürgen Conings?

The suspect Jürgen Conings (46) is a professional soldier from Dilsen-Stokkem who is active in the barracks of Leopoldsburg and earlier in that of Peutie. He was already on the radar of OCAD as a extreme right, in the category “potentially violent extremist”. The military intelligence service ADIV would also have been aware of his sympathies. The public prosecutor’s office has issued an investigation report.

From the professional soldier’s curriculum vitae, a copy of which is in the editorial office of The last news turns out to be a sniper with years of combat experience in a war zone. He was there on missions in Yugoslavia, Bosnia, Kosovo, Lebanon, Iraq and Afghanistan. The man is a welder by training and also works in the army repair department.

Conings is a soldier attached to the barracks of Leopoldsburg, but he was also active in the barracks of Peutie. As a member of the pre-deployment training cell in Leopoldsburg, he prepares soldiers for a foreign assignment.

Why is it dangerous?

Yesterday morning, the security services raised the alarm. Two suicide letters had been found from Conings. One was addressed to his wife and child and one to the outside world. That last farewell letter insinuates that he will join the resistance and may not survive. “A script has been found in which he indicates that he will not be arrested alive,” says a judicial source. That letter would also state that he is targeting politicians and virologists.

Conings had recently made threats against several people, including Marc Van Ranst. The KU Leuven virologist and his family were therefore transferred to a secret location for security reasons, with heavy surveillance. Van Ranst’s house was also guarded.

Van Ranst has now also responded to the threat on Twitter. The virologist says he is not afraid of threats from the extreme right corner. “Let one thing be clear: such threats don’t make the slightest impression on me,” said the virologist. Conings already caused problems with a firearm earlier this month. By 1:00 pm yesterday, the threat analysis body OCAD had affixed threat level 4 to JC, which means that he is an imminent threat. All security services are on standby, at the crisis center. The federal prosecutor’s office is conducting the investigation.

A source at Defense sums it up: “He’s one of those people you don’t want to be an enemy.” Such a profile is a nightmare for security services.

What weapons does Conings have with him?

Conings is suspected of carrying a gun, a bulletproof vest and a P90 submachine gun from FN. Although it is a light semi-automatic weapon, it can pierce bulletproof vests. Those weapons and ammunition would have been stolen from a barracks. A number of those weapons were still in the soldier’s car, which was found in a forest in Dilsen-Stokkem. There are also 4 anti-tank missile launchers found in the car. Investigators, however, assume that the fugitive man is still armed.

What are the possible targets?

In the past days or weeks, Conings has made multiple threats against multiple targets, including Marc Van Ranst. The suspect also threatened an attack against the ‘system’ and even military personnel. That is why several barracks, including those of Schaffen and Leopoldsburg, have been closed and the military are not allowed outside. All activities in the field are suspended. On Tuesday evening, concrete blocks were placed in front of the gate at the barracks in Schaffen, where paratroopers are trained.

“It is feared that he will carry out a violent action, against himself or against other persons, but the correct possible targets are still unclear,” said public prosecutor Eric Van Duyse yesterday.