De Wolf is alleged to have driven under the influence of alcohol after attending an event marking the retirement of his predecessor. He was driving his service vehicle, which later was involved in an accident. No-one was injured. He then declared he had given the keys to another police inspector and that she was driving at the time of the accident.

The Ghent prosecutor investigated and has concluded that there are “strong indications” of forgery in the drafting of the incident report. In addition, two other members of the Ghent police, commissioner Sonja Corryn, who took the keys from De Wolf, and internal affairs chief Olivier Speeckaert, were suspended.

The three people concerned have been suspended for four months and could face up to 10 years for falsifying evidence should the charges come to court. Later at the weekend, Ghent city council member Anne Schiettekatte, who was present at the retirement event, resigned after admitting she had lied about who was driving the car in question. “I behaved the way I thought I should behave for a good friend,” she said. She allegedly told police she had driven De Wolf to his home.

Now opposition parties Groen! and CD&V have called on Ghent mayor Daniel Termont, a socialist party colleague of Schiettekatte, for a full explanation.