Fugitive Antwerp drug smuggler arrested on ferry between Morocco and Spain: Hassan B. must serve another eight years in prison (Antwerp)

Hassan B. from Deurne was arrested this week in Tarifa, southern Spain. At border control it turned out that he was wanted by the judicial authorities in Belgium. Last year, B. was sentenced to eight years in prison in an extensive drug case.

36-year-old B. was sentenced to eight years in prison in May 2023, he was considered one of the leading figures of a group of criminals who had imported consignments of cocaine through a warehouse on Picoloplein in Stabroek.

The story of the criminal organization began in January 2018 when customs checked a container of pineapples from Costa Rica and found 443 kilograms of cocaine. The drugs were replaced by a substitute and the container continued its journey to its final destination, a major fruit importer in the Netherlands. However, the driver who picked up the container at the port deviated from his route. He made a stop at the Picolo business park in Stabroek, where he drove into a warehouse.

Suddenly in panic

The federal police, who had discreetly followed the container, saw how a number of people present from the warehouse suddenly fled in all directions. They probably panicked when they saw that the cocaine was gone. Two suspects were arrested on the spot.

The investigation ultimately identified nineteen suspects, with one of the leaders being Hassan B. In the first instance, he was given a ten-year prison sentence, but on appeal he was left with eight years, B. received a fine of 80,000 euros and an amount of 700,000 euros. was forfeited. “He played a leading role in the import of the shipment of cocaine, by recruiting people and in the background helping to set up a company to carry out the removal,” said the court of appeal. He was acquitted for his alleged role in the importation of another shipment of cocaine – intercepted in Hamburg.

Tangier

B. was not present at his trial last year, so the appeals court ordered his immediate arrest. When he arrived in Tarifa, Spain, this week on a ferry from Tangier, Morocco, the police discovered that there was an arrest warrant in his name and he was handcuffed. A court in Madrid will now judge whether B. can be extradited to our country. The Public Prosecutor’s Office is not responding to the arrest for the time being, and B.’s lawyers are also not commenting.