29 drug dealers were arrested over the two weekends of the Tomorrowland music festival in Boom, the Antwerp Public Prosecutor's Office announced in a statement on Tuesday.
The dealers will face charges at two upcoming hearings planned for October and December. The arrested individuals reportedly came from Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain, Columbia, Ukraine, Latvia, Serbia, Sweden, Brazil, Canada, Germany, Mexico and the United Kingdom.
In addition, 466 festival attendees were found to be in possession of drugs intended for personal use. They were handed immediate fines totalling €124,050.
For the first time, seized substances were tested at the scene by the National Institute of Criminalistics and Criminology (INCC). A total of 880 samples were analysed, with MDMA, ketamine and cocaine being the primary drugs confiscated.
In total, the police made 149 arrests. Besides drugs offences, arrests were made for attempts to enter the festival without tickets (65 people) and pick-pocketing (21 people). There were 59 reported thefts, particularly of necklaces, luxury watches, and smartphones.
A total of 11 drones which breached the festival's no-fly zone were confiscated by the police, and 36 taxis were seized for driver misconduct, or for attempting to attract customers outside designated areas. Additionally, 88 individuals were fined for parking incorrectly, with 72 vehicles towed for obstructive parking.
