The thieves appear to follow a pattern. “First the victim is carefully screened,” said Berkvens. “There hasn’t been a case where the target wasn’t wearing expensive jewellery. They only strike when they’re sure of what they’re going to get.”

The women are then followed home, their car is blocked and the robbery takes place. Necklaces and watches have been snipped off with pliers, and rings taken off of fingers. “Women in Knokke would do better not to wear expensive rings and jewels for the time being,” Berkvens advised.

For mayor Lippens, the advice is an insult to his town, which above all Flemish resorts has a reputation for attracting the well-to-do. It’s the most expensive municipality in Flanders to buy a house, and all year round Knokke is the place to see and be seen on the seafront, where designer labels abound and the café terraces glitter with bling.

Count Lippens, brother of former Fortis chairman Maurice and grandson of the former governor-general of Congo, once complained about “frigobox” tourists – those who bring their own picnic instead of visiting one of the town’s many restaurants. He also proposed moving the railway station several kilometres further down the coast.

He dismissed Berkvens’ concerns as “the media selling bad news. Maybe the prosecutor should make women take off their wedding rings, too.”