Teacher believed to be Belgium's latest serial killer

[LDW]

Ronald Janssen, described as quiet and withdrawn family type, father of 2 girls, confessed murdering a soon-to-be married young couple - 18 year old Shana Appeltans, and 22 year old Kevin Paulus. They had both been shot dead, and their car had been torched. Annick Van Uytsel, 18, went missing after a party in 2007. Janssen had attended the same party, and Annick’s bicycle was found close to an old apartment of Janssen’s. She was eventually found dead. Her body was later found dumped in a local canal, wrapped in a plastic sheet and weighted down with stones. She had been beaten to death. Even though police suspected Janssen might be involved in the murder, they never had enough evidence to convince him, so it was not until he confessed that they could arrest him.

“Investigators fear particularly that it will not stop and that this is rather the beginning of a long list of Janssen’s crimes,” the De Standaard newspaper reported. Prosecutors across Belgium have now reopened the files for two unsolved abduction murders, of Ingrid Caeckaert, 27 stabbed in 1991 and Carola Titze, 16, murdered in 1996. Detectives have also reopened an investigation into the 2006 disappearance, and suspected murder, of Tamara Morris, 27. Media reports have linked him to up to 15 killings, usually the rape and murder of young women.

His crimes have already been compared to the notorious Marc Dutroux case, the serial killer who traumatized Belgium when he abused and murdered four girls aged between eight to 19 during the 1990s - he murdered 4 of them. Could another serial killer have been hiding behind a quiet teacher Ronald Janssen and how many people he actually killed, until further investigation remains unknown.

[CZBZ]

"The murderer has been identified by local media as Ronald Janssen, a teacher of technical drawing whom they described as quiet and withdrawn."
 ~LINK "Belgian Double Murder"

Exactly WHY it is important to know that narcissists are not necessarily overt braggarts, pompous buttheads and overtly selfish bazturds! One of the errors we make in our current description of NPD is assuming that narcissists are easy-to-spot fatheads. NOT SO.

People in 'caring' professions, like a teacher for example, may be just as rigidly selfish and self-centered as the easy-to-spot narcissist bragging about his exploits and prowess. Just because they appear to be 'shy', quiet and withdrawn, that does NOT mean they are not pathological! We see this over and over in serial killings---"He seemed to be such a nice guy!" and yet, we still associate braggadocio with narcissism.

Thanks for posting the article. Sometimes I get feeling like the only narcissists on the planet are the ones who live in the USA. The narcissism most people talk about here though, is rather 'benign'. Annoying, yes. Eye-rolling, yes. But not necessarily MALIGNANT. I hope people are not dismissing the danger of the narcissistic pathology in the false assumption that narcissists are easy-to-spot because they are arrogant.

Gee, some of my favorite relatives are arrogant but they certainly are not pathological.

This man sounds like the sort of guy who would 'blend in' to society and even make people trust him because he was shy and wouldn't hurt a fly. Scary to know that someone could be using his job as a 'cover' to his malicious intentions!



Hugs,
CZ

[Flower]

"Scary to know that someone could be using his job as a 'cover' to his malicious intentions."
*CZ*

It would scare the heck out of most people if they only knew how frequently people do use their job as a cover. There is plenty of stories in "Crime Library," whereby people in so-called "helping professions" are truly sadistical in their private lives.
Those stories are the most horrible ones that are broadcasted and written about in newspapers and magazines.

What is often is not made public are the cases when people (often narcissists) use their profession to obtain supply, frequently targeting those who they supervise. I personally witnessed this with coworker N when he professed he was a manager to Diane and Sharon (pseudo names).  He privately made his intentions known to these two woman and one of them was savvy enough to be able to avoid being alone with him and promptly reported him to the supervisor.

It wasn't until he left that people started collaborating their stories and realized how much triangulation he created and how many lies he told. He got by because of his slick flattering tongue and manipulation of people to help him with his projects.

Many narcissists are able to fit in society without raising much suspicion and are not rapists or serial killers. Yet I think, given certain circumstances and triggers, along with narcissistic rage, I do not doubt their capacity to carry out severe harm or murder.  Therefore, I literally walked on eggshells with a certain maN when I was being stalked.  I really did not know what he was capable of doing.

I do know that I will not be employed in the "helping profession" in the future.  It is just too dangerous!

[LDW]

After the village was shocked by the news of the young couple stabbed to death... the next monday the teacher apparantly had spoken about it with the children in his class. Can you imagine? Trying to 'comfort' children knowing that you're the cause of all this trauma? FREEEAAAAAKKKKK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And what about these children? How are they ever going to trust another teacher or adult ever again???

The most dangerous people among us are ingeniously veiled. They carefully surround themselves with people entirely UNLIKE themselves, that is, with deeply empathic human beings, who are slow to judge, who are tolerant and who have an eye for the good to be found in others. They know how to exploit to their own advantage such character traits. It is their association with such people that maximizes their chances of perpetuating the facade and keeping themselves from exposure.
 
One can't help but reason that he's either an outstanding citizen, leader, priest, court judge, teacher, etc., or he's the most morally depraved individual you are going to meet for a long while. And very few of us expect to discover such a depth of depravity in well dressed professional adults. For he is careful not to show opposite extremes to one and the same person, especially if that person is someone he needs. He is careful to keep this side of himself from others, for it is an inconsistency that might expose him. So adept is he at this narrowly focused persecution, in fact, that any attempt by the victim to tell another will in all probability make her (the victim) appear as if she is losing her mind.

The facade he uses to hide his depravity and fool the world may very well contain genuinely good things, such as religious, political, judicial, or educational principles. But most of his victims will forever associate his deception with these good things and will be unable to distinguish between what is genuinely good from the narcissist's abuse of it. In rejecting the one, they inevitably reject the other. How many good things are irretrievably lost to others as a result of such abuse?

http://www.lifeissues.net/writers/mcm/mcm_25narcissism1.html

[Flower]

"The most dangerous people among us are ingeniously veiled." *LDW*

It took me years to realize that what one sees, is not necessarily is what one gets, which was due to my experiences with a few narcissists. It wasn't until my last experience that I began to wonder if I had N-magnet stamped on my forhead, LOL.
Nowadays, I think more people are aware that dangerous people can be in respectable occupations.

Also,

on the link you provided, LDW.

From that article:

"The narcissist takes advantage of every opportunity to favor a person who is down and in need -- as long as the prospects that he will be of use later on are good. Such favors might include providing employment, personal counseling, boosting one's confidence, flattery, listening and being sympathetic (at least apparently), etc."

OMG! Now I know why I was such a N-magnet! While I was employed in social services, I was providing three of those services (favors).  Thank God I am out of there!  I don't know if I could take another episode of being acquainted with a narcissistic stalker.

Flower

[RB22]

My X was an emergency medical technician, Volunteer fire fighter, paramedic and held degrees in geology, marine biology and a law degree.    He now works as an emergency response supervisor for the health dept in our state.  And also works with a Disaster medical unit that is mobile. 

He is in his element... the disaster unit goes to huge disasters and sets up a mobile hospital (think M.A.S.H.)  What they don't tell you is that the first responders get the job of deciding WHO gets care and who doesn't.   Guess who does That job?????  Talking about needing to feel like God.... to some people he does hold their life in his hands... just ask him. He isn't a braggard... but he will quietly tell you all about his life.. and really won't want to listen to you talk about yours.

[Litha]

Ronald Janssen, described as quiet and withdrawn family type, father of 2 girls, confessed murdering ...

CZ wrote:
Exactly WHY it is important to know that narcissists are not necessarily overt braggarts, pompous buttheads and overtly selfish bazturds!

Why is his "quiet" personality important enough to be in line 1 of the article? Because western society has a strong prejudice against introverted people, and therefore tries to associate introverted personality traits with psychopathy wherever possible.

As an introverted person I find this offensive, frustrating, and irritating. One of the best (and funniest) articles I've read about this prejudice is located here:
http://earlyretirementextreme.com/2010/01/etroverts-and-introverts-the-great-dichotomy.html

Quiet, shy, withdrawn people are far more likely to be the victim of a crime than the perpetrator. But I digress...thanks for posting LDW

[CZBZ]

We do have a prejudice against introverted people, Litha. People think a shy guy is the next serial killer or something. Even a shy woman is considered 'sick' in some way. What people don't realize is that shy people may have very intimate relationships with only a handful of people. The capacity for intimacy isignals psychological and mental health.

Then there's that gregarious, outspoken, life-of-the-party person with thousands of friends, but he or she is not intimate with any one of them. They usually complain of loneliness which makes people shake their heads because we see them as socially adjusted, integrated and even popular. It's the lack of intimacy that speaks of a problem.

People are complex & we're prone to reducing complexity by simplifying 'other people's behavior' to something we can understand. It's just something I've noticed, even with myself. 


Hugs, you ol' introvert, you! 

CZ

[SydneyFireworks]

Why is his "quiet" personality important enough to be in line 1 of the article?

Funny, I've never interpreted those sorts of comments as a prejudice against introverts (as in expecting the introvert to be the perpetrator).  I've always taken them as "who'd a thunk it" statements - who'd have thought a quiet / shy / withdrawn etc. person could have committed such an atrocity.  I've always felt journalists say those sorts of things because the perp's introversion adds intrigue to the story.  And that's why they don't say "...described as an overt braggart, pompous butthead and overly selfish bazturd".

 

Hugs
Syd

[LDW]

Syd, that's exactly how I'd interpret it... like with any N or psychopath, nobody believe the atrocities they are capable of doing. In fact YOU are the one who's crazy thinking/saying it.