Rivierenland police arrest drug couriers after pursuit to Anderlecht: “Speeds of more than 200 kilometers per hour” (Mechelen)

A team from the Rivierenland police zone was able to arrest two French drug couriers after a mad chase. The chase started in Mechelen and only stopped in Anderlecht after the suspects were involved in a collision.

The facts took place on Tuesday evening. Then the police received a report that a car with German license plates had entered our country after a chase in the Netherlands. “The analysis of the ANPR cameras showed that the vehicle in question was approaching the territory of the Rivierenland police zone. Naturally we were looking forward to the car in question and an ILR team (Intelligence Response Team, ed.) of our police zone, the vehicle also got stuck on the E19 towards Brussels,” police spokesman Dirk Van de Sande explains. “Our people chased the car in question and noticed that the driver performed a dangerous maneuver just before the Brussels Ring. At first the driver prepared to drive towards Namur, but he ultimately decided to take the exit to Charleroi.”

About the hard shoulder

At that moment, the pursuing police team had had enough and decided to activate the blue flashing lights and siren with the intention of stopping the car. “When the driver noticed this, he immediately increased his speed and even used the hard shoulder to flee. The man continued to drive along the emergency lane and also slalomed between the other cars on the highway. Our team found that speeds of more than 200 kilometers per hour were reached.”

On the Ring in Anderlecht, the fleeing car collided with two other road users. An attempt was made to flee again, but the police managed to arrest the driver. “The passenger then locked himself in the car and could only be arrested after we smashed a window of the car.”

During the arrest, the two Frenchmen behaved unruly. One of them and the drivers of the two cars that were hit suffered minor injuries.

Drugs and money

The two suspects are brothers aged 42 and 45. “In their car we found 1,000 ecstasy pills, 200 grams of cannabis and 3 kilograms of a white powder. They also had a significant amount of money with them. Investigations are underway to determine exactly what substance the white powder is. The money, the car and the drugs were seized on behalf of the public prosecutor’s office.”

More than likely, these were drug couriers who had purchased the narcotics in the Netherlands and were on their way to France.

The two Frenchmen were brought before the investigating judge in Brussels on Thursday. It decided to arrest them as perpetrators or co-perpetrators for importing or possessing narcotics, deliberately obstructing traffic and for participating in a criminal organization. (tdk)