Other members of the Haemers Gang were Basri Bajrami, who hailed from Kosovo,[2] Marc Van Dam, Philippe Lacroix and Denise Tyack.
Wanted in Belgium on several criminal counts, and by this time having an infant son, he fled to Brazil with his girlfriend, but they were tracked down.
Suffering severe withdrawal symptoms in prison, and after a transfer prevented him joining an escape with his accomplices, the by then 40-year-old was apparently unable to cope with the prospect of serving a long sentence.
The kidnapping of Vanden Boeynants by the Haemers gang was made into a novelty song, Qui...?
(1989) by the New Beat band Brussels Sound Revolution, which contained samples from Vanden Boeynants' press conference.