Police investigate after two officers spotted Christmas shopping

A photo of two uniformed police officers apparently doing their Christmas shopping has sparked an internal investigation by Brussels Capital Ixelles police. The image posted on social media showed two policemen carrying bags in the Docks Bruxsel shopping centre.

“The investigation needed to establish who it was and when the photo was taken,” said police spokesman Olivier Slosse on Monday. Due to the location and the bilingual uniform marking (police-politie), the pair were believed to be from the Brussels Capital Ixelles zone.

He said that the police condemned such an action, emphasising that it expected officers to be physically and mentally available to conduct their tasks while on duty. In the context of the level three threat level, it is important to be able to react quickly to incidents, which is not the case if they are walking in the street with shopping, he added.

The photo two years ago of an army officer in Brussels carrying a bag from a well-known cosmetic chain provoked a similar polemic on social media.