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Hasselt –
The Federal Judicial Police (FGP) East Flanders has rounded up a drug gang that processed cocaine in cardboard packaging. In a laboratory in Limburg, the cocaine was removed from the cardboard via a chemical process. A total of eleven suspects have been arrested. In Limburg this involved eight people.
Phillip Pergens/Olivier Simons
Today at 2:07 PM
The FGP East Flanders discovered the drug import during an investigation at the request of the East Flanders public prosecutor’s office. Police discovered that cocaine was being processed abroad in cardboard boxes, which were then actually used as packaging for shipments. Once in Belgium, the cardboard packaging was chemically treated to extract the cocaine again.
8 kilos of cocaine
On Thursday, the FGP East Flanders carried out a total of seven searches, in collaboration with the FGP Limburg and with the assistance of the special units of the federal police. This involved two house searches in Limburg and five in East Flanders. An operational cocaine laundry was found in our province. Large quantities of cocaine were washed and pressed into blocks in the building. Approximately 8 kilos of produced cocaine were found, in addition to a large amount of cardboard from which cocaine still had to be extracted. Cardboard boxes and material to extract the cocaine were also found at the other location in Limburg.
In addition to the cocaine and processing materials, 20,000 euros, four cars and other valuable objects were also seized. A total of 11 suspects were arrested: 8 in Limburg and 3 in East Flanders. This involved four Belgians, five Colombians and two Albanians. They will be brought before the investigating judge in Ghent today (Friday, ed.).