Renaud Hardy (born 1 April 1962), known as The Parkinson's Murderer, is a
Belgian serial killer who was sentenced to
life imprisonment
Life imprisonment is any sentence of imprisonment for a crime under which convicted people are to remain in prison for the rest of their natural lives or indefinitely until pardoned, paroled, or otherwise commuted to a fixed term. Crimes for ...
for murder, rape and attempted murder in 2018.
Arrest
On 16 September 2015, Linda Doms was murdered in
Zemst,
Flemish Brabant
Flemish Brabant ( nl, Vlaams-Brabant ; french: Brabant flamand ) is a province of Flanders, one of the three regions of Belgium. It borders on (clockwise from the North) the Belgian provinces of Antwerp, Limburg, Liège, Walloon Brabant, Haina ...
. Her corpse was discovered a few days later by a neighbour. Several people were interviewed, including Hardy, a former friend of Doms. Initially, the investigators had no evidence of Hardy's involvement and he was released. When the investigators found images on Hardy's memory card showing the crime scene, Hardy was rearrested on 21 September 2015.
During the arrest, the
Mechelen
Mechelen (; french: Malines ; traditional English name: MechlinMechelen has been known in English as ''Mechlin'', from where the adjective ''Mechlinian'' is derived. This name may still be used, especially in a traditional or historical contex ...
court again opened an investigation into older files. From DNA traces a link was established to the murder of 82-year-old Marie Walschaerts, which was committed in
Leest in May 2014, and an attempted murder in September 2014 in
Bonheiden
Bonheiden () is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Antwerp. The municipality comprises the towns of Bonheiden proper and Rijmenam. In 2021, Bonheiden had a total population of 15,177. The total area is 29.27 km2 (11.30 sq ...
. He is also the suspected perpetrator of an attack on Belgian actress Veerle Eyckermans in February 2015, who at the time lived near Hardy. He is also considered responsible for the murder of an 85-year-old in
Boortmeerbeek
Boortmeerbeek () is a town in the Belgium, Belgian province of Flemish Brabant. The municipality comprises the towns of Boortmeerbeek proper, Schiplaken and Hever, Belgium, Hever. The total area is 18.64 km² which gives a population density ...
in December 2011.
Hardy had been arraigned a week before Doms' murder, with the help of sex offender Doris Corbeel, because in 2014 he had shot a passer-by with an air gun. In his own words, he saw the woman riding on the bike and suddenly had the urge to harm her.
Parkinson's
In 2007, doctors diagnosed Hardy with
Parkinson's disease. The disease and its influence on his actions received much attention during his trial, with some Belgian media even calling him the "Parkinson's murderer". It was also mentioned that he took medicine to treat the disease, where a well-known neurologist, Chris Van Der Linden, stated that he had become a murderer due to the addicting medication. Also during the trial, Hardy's defence often cited the disease as a mitigating factor.
Condemnation
The trial began on 9 February 2018. After almost a month, on 8 March 2018, Hardy was declared guilty by the people's jury. He was sentenced to life imprisonment.
See also
*
List of serial killers by country
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hardy, Renaud
1962 births
Belgian people convicted of murder
Belgian people convicted of rape
Belgian rapists
Belgian serial killers
Living people
People convicted of attempted murder
People from Mechelen