Belgium is known around the world for its chocolate, beer, waffles, and... criminals? Each year, Belgium's list of wanted suspects grows but some are more actively sought by Belgian authorities, making it onto the infamous “Most Wanted” list.
Suspects on Belgium’s most wanted list have committed crimes that require prosecution within the country. Many have already been tried in absentia but are actively evading capture. The whereabouts of most of the suspects are unknown; they might be in Belgium but more likely are overseas.
Belgian offenders regularly end up on foreign wanted lists for crimes committed abroad. Currently, eight criminals can be found on the “red notice” board of Interpol, a worldwide police cooperation platform. These suspects are sought for murder, manslaughter, money laundering, and even terrorism in countries as far away as Malaysia or Poland.
If members of the public know the whereabouts of any of the following suspects, they should not attempt to detain them themselves but instead contact the police at 0800/30.300 or via their online tip form.
Hicham CHAIB
Born: 24/10/1981
Wanted by Brussels Public Prosecutor’s office
Credit: Federal Police
Fugitive Hicham Chaib was a figurehead in the now-banned Sharia4Belgium, a Sharia law advocacy group that called for turning Belgium into a fundamentalist Islamic state. In 2012, the group was disbanded and in 2015 it was designated a terrorist organisation by a Belgian judge.
The group regularly called for the death of its political opponents and its members were regularly prosecuted in relation to religious hatred and Islamic terrorism.
Chaib was a bodyguard and right-hand man to the founder of the extremist group, Fouad Belkacem. After Belkacem’s arrest, Chaib played an instrumental role in the group, travelling to Syria to fight for terrorist group Majlis Shura Al-Majahdin. He later joined the Islamic State and encouraged his followers to commit terrorist attacks.
In 2015, Chaib was sentenced to a 15-year prison term in absentia by the Antwerp District Court in relation to the terroristic murder of a prisoner in March 2016 in Syria. An active arrest warrant is out for his capture.
Suleyman BETELGUIRIEV
Born: 05/08/1993
Wanted by West Flanders Public Prosecutor’s Office
Credit: Federal Police
In 2014, Chechnya-born Suleyman Betelguiriev was found guilty of the murder of 19-year-old Mikey Peeters. Betelguiriev and an accomplice stabbed the young Belgian six times “for no apparent reason” at the Bruges Market. He is still on the run, having fled immediately after the attack to his country of origin, where Belgian press report he is “having a good time.”
In 2019, Betelguiriev was sentenced to 30 years in prison in absentia by the Assize Court of West Flanders.
Rouf UDDIN
Born: 10/12/1975
Wanted by the Brussels Public Prosecutor’s Office
Credit: Federal Police
Bangladeshi national Rouf Uddin was sentenced in 2009 by the Brussels Assize Court to 30 years in jail in absentia for the 2002 murder of Malika Soussi.
Uddin attempted to rob Soussi at her apartment after violently attacking her the week before. Police found Soussi in a pool of blood in her apartment on Rue du Trône in Ixelles, with her throat cut.
Investigators initially detained the wrong suspect, which allowed Uddin time to make his escape from Belgium. In a search of his apartment, blood was found on the suspect’s shoes. Uddin had been stalking the victim before his attack. The suspect’s family has always refused to help in the investigation.
Kassim GEIBI
Born: 01/07/1966
Wanted by Walloon Brabant Public Prosecutor’s Office
Credit: Federal Police
In 2003, Iraqi national Kassim Geibi was sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of Patrick Clavereau during an attempted robbery in Lille, France. Geibi was once a political refugee fleeing from his home country.
Clavereau was discovered lying on his stomach, bound, half-naked and gagged at his apartment. A television, mobile phone, and video recorder had been stolen from the property. Clavereau was known to host political refugees at his home.
Geibi was arrested in relation to the murder in 2000 in Belgium but escaped from Verviers prison in 2008 and fled, never to be captured again.
Soufiane MEZROUI
Born: 27/07/1992
Wanted by Antwerp Public Prosecutor’s Office
Credit: Federal Police
Belgian fugitive Soufiane Mezroui, known as Abu Basir, was an active member of the Belgian terrorist group Sharia4Belgium and was regularly in contact with other terrorist suspects connected to the group.
Wanted since 2013, Mezroui left to fight in Syria, joining terrorist group Jabhat Al-Nursa on a mission to “lead a violent struggle against the Shiites and against all disbelievers.”
He and his brother were sentenced to five years in prison and a fine of €15,000 in absentia at a Brussels court in 2015. Mezroui was once believed to be in Spain, where he was actively wanted by Spanish police.
Fehriye ERDAL
Born: 25/2/1977
Wanted by West Flanders Public Prosecutor's Office
Credit: Federal Police
As part of a reciprocity agreement with Turkey, Fehriye Erdal was sentenced to 15 years in prison in Belgium for her involvement in a terror attack in Istanbul in 1996, which claimed the life of Turkish businesses tycoon Ozdemir Sabanci and his secretary Nilgun Hasefe.
She is a leading figure in the Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party/Front, a Kurdish militant revolutionary group active in Turkey. The group is designated as a terrorist organisation by Japan, Turkey, the US, the UK, and the European Union. The group has not been active since 2015.
Erdal’s inclusion on the most wanted list is perhaps controversial. In 2008, she was acquitted by a Turkish court for her role in the assassination attempt but was later found guilty of the same murder in 2017 by a court in Belgium.
In 1999 she had been captured by police in Belgium following a fire at her place of hiding in Belgium. She tried to evade capture by showing a fake passport but was detained after police took her fingerprints.
In 2006, she was due to be sentenced to four years in jail in connection to crimes in Belgium. But just a few hours before her sentence was read and despite 24-hour surveillance by the Belgian Secret Service, she managed to escape captivity. Her escape was blamed on police incompetence.
In 2008, a Belgian court of appeal acquitted Erdal of all charges stating that there was no evidence linking her to terrorist activities. Despite this, in 2017 she was sentenced to 15 years in jail in absentia by a Belgian court. Belgian authorities say that they are still actively looking for Erdal.
Interpol once issued a red notice for Erdal but this has since been removed. There have been reported sightings of Erdal in Cyprus and Jordan, but there is still no solid evidence of her whereabouts.
Felix OMOREGIE
Born: 22/10/1977
Wanted by Brussels public prosecutor's office
Credit: Federal Police
In 2012, Nigerian national Felix Omoregie was sentenced to 12 years in prison for his role as the head of a criminal organisation which trafficked young girls, some of whom were minors.
The victims, who were in precarious situations, were trafficked from Nigeria to Italy by Omoregie’s criminal organisation. Once there, the victims were trafficked into prostitution across Europe.
As leader of the organisation, Omoregie decided where the victims would be trafficked and received all the gains from prostitution. Belgium was one of the major destinations for the girls.
It is believed that Omoregie is still involved in organised people trafficking, subjecting girls to forced abortions, voodoo rituals, vows of silence and threats of violence against the victims’ families.
Bayram KAYA
Born: 01/01/1960
Wanted by Antwerp Public Prosecutor's Office
Credit: Federal Police
In 2016, Bayram Kaya was sentenced to life in prison in absentia for the murder of 20-year-old Bernard M. Kaya shot Bernard in the head over a dispute over a rental agreement. Bernard was renting an apartment owned by Kaya.
Kaya is believed to be hiding in Emirdag in Turkey, living with his mother. There is no extradition treaty between Turkey and Belgium, and this is often used as a means for criminals to escape justice.
The fugitive was once a professional football player for Belgian football club K. Berchem Sport in the 1980s.
Alam KHORSHED
Born: 01/11/1983
Wanted by Brussels Public Prosecutor's Office
Credit: Federal Police
In 2012, Alam Khorshed murdered 30-year-old Rajvir Kaur and her three sons at their home in Etterbeek. Khorshed slit their throats.
An investigation later revealed that a colleague of the father of the killed children, Khorshed, had been responsible for the murders. He is believed to have fled to Bangladesh.
In 2018, Korshed was sentenced to life in prison in absentia for the murders.
Othmane GALOUBY
Born: 25/03/1982
Wanted by Antwerp Public Prosecutor's Office
Credit: Federal Police
In 2016, Othmane Galbouy was sentenced to 10 years in prison for intentional bodily harming leaving to death in absentia after he practised an Islamic exorcism on an 18-year-old girl, Layla A, to “cast out evil spirits (jinns).” The girl apparently had “lesbian feelings” and her parents had requested the exorcism.
Over three days, Galbouy read the Quran, cast blessings, forced the victim to smell musk, and covered her in olive oil.
The exorcism escalated as late on one night in October 2009, he poured two buckets of boiling water over the victim, who was sitting in a bath filled with lukewarm water. He also applied acid to the victim's knees and stomach.
The victim is believed to have died in pain from complications from chemical burns from sodium hydroxide. The “faith healing” was akin to torture, the court ruled. Galbouy was not legally residing in Belgium.
Crisanto PINKIHAN ATTOLBA
Born: 29/07/1967
Wanted by Leuven Public Prosecutor's Office
Credit: Federal Police
In 2005, Crisanto Attolba murdered taxi driver Raul Simeon by stabbing and striking him, even when the victim was on the ground. The murder occurred as the result of a professional rivalry. A court ruled that the stabbing was intentional and not in self-defence.
In 2013, Attolba was sentenced in person before the Flemish Brabant Assize Court but has since made his way back onto the most wanted list. It is unclear whether the suspect escaped prison or left the country before arraignment.
Mohamed AISSA
Born: 08/08/1973
Wanted by the Brussels Public Prosecutor's Office
Credit: Federal Police
In 2011, Moroccan-born Mohamed Aissa and an accomplice broke into an address on rue de la Montagne in Brussels and assaulted the occupant in a violent robbery attempt. After the assault, the victim died of his injuries.
An investigation made it possible to intercept one of the suspects, but Aissa was able to escape.
In 2014, Aissa was sentenced to life in jail in absentia and is still being actively searched for.
Azeddine KBIR BOUNEKOUB
Born: 17/07/1992
Wanted by the Antwerp Public Prosecutor's Office
Credit: Federal Police
Another member of Belgian terror group Sharia4Belgium, Azeddine Kbir Bounekoub, also known as Abu Abdullah, left Belgium to travel to Syria to join the terror group Jahbat Al-Nursa. In Syria, he played a leadership role in the infamous terror group.
Footage online shows Bounekoub threatening and encouraging terrorist attacks. In 2015, he was sentenced to 15 years in jail in absentia and a further 10 years in jail at a Brussels court.
