May 20, 2021- 12:44 p.m.
A major manhunt is ongoing in Belgium as special forces search for a heavily armed soldier who is on a terror watchlist and has been described as an ‘acute threat’.
46-year-old Jurgen Conings was first reported missing on Monday when a collection of weapons including four anti-tank rocket launchers were taken from his military barracks.
Now three days into the search, approximately 350 officers are involved in tracking down Mr Conings, who was reportedly a military shooting instructor.
Mr Conings is said to have written ‘farewell’ letters before his disappearance in which he criticised the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, writing that he could ‘no longer live in a society where politicians and virologists had taken everything away from us.’
Belgian Federal Prosecutor Wenke Roggen announced that Mr Conings’ car was discovered on the Dutch border, in which ‘four missile launchers and ammunition were found.’
Forces from both Germany and the Netherlands have now joined in on the search, as officers assume Mr Conings is still alive.
The former soldier is believed to be carrying weapons on his person, including a sub-machinegun and a bullet-proof vest.
Mr Conings, who has been urged to hand himself in, made threats to a number of people before his disappearance, including top virologist Marc Van Ranst.
Mr Van Ranst has been moved with his family to a secure location until the soldier is found, according to the BBC, but the scientist tweeted on Wednesday that ‘such threats do not make the slightest impression on me.’
The missing soldier had reportedly already been on the radar for the Co-ordination Unit for Threat Analysis, sparking questions as to how he got access to weapons from his military barracks.
Belgian Prime Minister Alexander Dr Croo has asked: ‘The real question is of course: how is this possible?’
