5 charged for attacking Manchester City fan in Belgium

Brussels, Oct 21, 2021 (AFP) - Five supporters of Belgian club Brugge were charged on Thursday after a violent attack left a 63-year-old Manchester City fan fighting for his life.

The City fan, a Belgian national, was badly beaten at a motorway service station where rival fans stole his club scarf after Tuesday's Champions League game in the Belgian city.

The public prosecutor's office in Ghent said that Guido De Pauw was with a small group of Manchester City fans, including his son Jurgen, when he was attacked.

Two days after the assault, De Pauw remains in a coma, in "a stable condition", according to Flemish media.

Asked by AFP, his son refused to comment on his state of health.

Jurgen De Pauw is one of the leaders of a Belgian group of City supporters called Blue Moon Belgium.

On Wednesday, he denounced the act of "senseless violence" and said his father had been "left for dead" by his attackers.

Five suspects, four men in their twenties and one in his forties, appeared before a judge Thursday who charged them all with "culpable negligence".

Two of the five face more serious charges, one being accused of "theft with aggravated violence", the other of "wilful assault and battery", prosecutors said.

Those two suspects were remanded in custody.