A leading figure in the Antwerp drug scene has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for importing cocaine through the city’s port. Eleven other defendants were tried in the same case.
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Leader of Antwerp drug ring sentenced to 12 years in prison for cocaine smuggling operation
Sally Tipper
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The public prosecutor had previously demanded a 14-year sentence for Abdelilah EM, the mastermind behind the import of at least 3 tonnes of cocaine.
The trial related to six consignments of cocaine imported via the port of Antwerp between January and December 2020, totalling at least 3,028kg. The facts came to light after analysis of intercepted conversations from the encrypted messaging service Sky ECC.
A Sky ECC user identified as Abdelilah EM is believed to have been the instigator. According to the public prosecutor, he is one of the leading figures in the drug world. On EM’s orders, at least 150kg of cocaine were sold in the spring of 2021, with a value of €4.2 million, of which he kept €668,000.
In this case, EM was sentenced to 12 years in prison by the court, in addition to several other sentences for other crimes.
He was given an eight-year sentence at the end of 2020 in another major drug case that came to light in 2014 following a fatal shooting in Amsterdam. In June 2023, he was sentenced to 14 years in a case involving 12 cocaine shipments. That case is still pending before the court of appeal.
Among the 11 other defendants on trial in Antwerp was Mohammed C. The court only issued a forfeiture order against him. He was previously sentenced to a total of 18 years in prison for various cases involving drug-related violence, searches in the national register and the import of narcotics. He is currently being held in a Moroccan prison.
The other defendants received prison sentences of two, five and nine years. They include the owner of a transport company who made his services available to criminal organisations.