Belgium denies 'terror link' in murder of guard at nuclear centre

The murder this week of a security guard at a Belgian nuclear research centre is a purely criminal affair unrelated to any terrorist threat, prosecutors said Saturday.

The Charleroi prosecutor's office in charge of the case "formally denied" any connection between the murder of Didier Prospero, who was shot dead on Thursday at his home in Froidchapelle and a planned terror attack, the Belga news agency reported, citing the prosecutor.

There was no immediate independent confirmation from the prosecutor's office in Charleroi, about an hour's drive south of Brussels.

Belga said the prosecutor had also denied media reports that Prospero's access badge had gone missing.

Prospero, who worked for the G4S security firm, was found dead in his bathroom by his three children when they returned from school. He had been shot with four bullets.

His dog was also killed.

He was in charge of security for a nuclear research centre at Fleurus. Media had said he worked at a nuclear power plant.

The case is being handled by criminal investigators and terror specialists are not involved, Belga said.

The media reports follow last year's discovery by investigators of surveillance footage of an official from a Belgian nuclear plant that was found in the flat of a suspect linked to the Brussels and Paris attacks.