Jorgen Van Laer (left) is suspected of trying to defraud drug criminal Flor Bressers. — © Jeroen Hanselaer
Antwerp –
The council chamber in Antwerp has referred the well-known criminal lawyer Jorgen Van Laer to the criminal court. Van Laer will be prosecuted for membership of a criminal organization and attempted money laundering. But there is another file at the federal public prosecutor’s office, in which he is suspected of attempting to defraud the well-known Lommel drug criminal Flor Bressers.
The Antwerp public prosecutor’s office is prosecuting 42-year-old Jorgen Van Laer on the basis of messages from the chat application Sky ECC, popular among criminals. The intercepted communication allegedly showed that Van Laer provided services to a top criminal in Dubai that went beyond his role as a lawyer. The criminal lawyer is said to have given the fugitive drug offender advice on how he could launder his criminal money. The public prosecutor’s office believes that he is therefore guilty of membership of a criminal organization and attempted money laundering.
Master Jorgen Van Laer is considered one of the leading criminal lawyers in Antwerp. Not only did he act in the sensational Reuzegom case, he was also the lawyer who defended the controversial plastic surgeon Jeff Hoeyberghs. Van Laer is also the advisor to numerous key figures in the Antwerp crime scene.
Not the first
Van Laer is not the first lawyer to go to trial because he is said to be too close to drug criminals. This previously happened with, among others, Pol Vandemeulebroucke and his employees Sahil Malik and Jawad H. Jorgen Van Laer not only has a problem with the public prosecutor’s office in Antwerp, another investigation against Van Laer is currently underway at the federal public prosecutor’s office. He is suspected of attempting to defraud drug criminal Flor Bressers.
Master Van Laer does not want to comment on the content of the accusations. He says he looks forward to the court proceedings with confidence. “This is a personal matter from years ago that is completely separate from the activities of the office. There is no impact whatsoever on clients, colleagues or the activities of the office. I look forward to the course of the procedure with confidence and will provide my full cooperation.”