Belgian former king ordered to take DNA test over alleged love child | News | DW | 16.05.2019
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Belgian former king ordered to take DNA test over alleged love child

A Belgian artist who grew up in one of the country's richest families claims to be the illegitimate daughter of King Albert II. He faces a steep fine if he fails to provide results from a DNA test to resolve the case.

A Belgian court on Thursday ordered the country's former king to pay €5,000 ($5,600) a day until he takes a DNA test to resolve whether he is the biological father of a woman who claims to be his daughter.

The appeals court in Brussels ruled that King Albert II, 84, conduct the test in the presence of a justice official.

The judges said Albert must start paying Delphine Boel the €5,000-per-day fine if he fails to attend the appointment. The former king said he would appeal the verdict at Belgium's highest court.

Albert refuses DNA sample

Boel began legal proceedings to be recognized as Albert's child in 2013. Her claim first gained publicity after Albert's wife, Queen Paola, claimed in a 1999 biography that he had a child with another woman while they were married.

DNA tests have already shown that Boel is not the biological daughter of Jacques Boel, a member of one of Belgium's richest families.

The former king, who ruled from 1993 until his abdication in 2013, had refused to provide her with a DNA sample despite another court ordering him to do so in October.

Belgium's highest court is expected to deliver a final ruling at the end of the year.

amp/msh (AP, Reuters, dpa)


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