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The Hague: Police have dismantled a huge drug smuggling ring that controls a third of the cocaine trade in Europe and arrested 49 suspects from different countries, including six considered “major targets” in Dubai, Europol announced on Monday.
The European Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation said in a statement that 30 tonnes of drugs were seized as part of the huge international operation, while suspects were arrested in France, Spain, Belgium and the Netherlands .
“Drug traffickers whom Europol sees as major targets have banded together to form what is known as a ‘mega-cartel’ which controlled about a third of Europe’s cocaine trade,” the statement read.
He added: “The volume of cocaine importation into Europe under the supervision and guidance of the suspects was enormous, and law enforcement officers confiscated more than 30 tonnes during the investigation period.”
The agency said Dubai had arrested two “very important” suspects linked to the Netherlands, as well as two people linked to Spain and others linked to France.
“One of the Dutch suspects is of great importance,” a Europol source told AFP on condition of anonymity.
Serious criminal offences
Thirteen people were arrested in Spain, six in France and 10 in Belgium, while 14 people were arrested in 2021 in the Netherlands as part of the same operation, according to the statement.
Prosecutors in the Netherlands said they would request the suspects’ extradition from the UAE.
One of the suspects is a 37-year-old with dual Dutch and Moroccan nationality who was arrested on suspicion of importing thousands of kilograms of cocaine into the Netherlands in 2020 and 2021.
“These are serious crimes related to international drug trafficking, particularly from South America through the ports of Antwerp and Rotterdam,” the Dutch prosecutor said in a statement.
Another suspect is a 40-year-old man with dual Dutch and Bosnian nationality.
