Ugo Lemaire, 35, the son of former Federal Minister and Belgian MEP Marie Arena (PS), is among 21 people who have been sent to trial in Brussels over an alleged international cannabis trafficking operation between Spain and Belgium.
During a search carried out in July 2023 as part of the separate Qatargate corruption investigation, detectives searched Arena's home in Schaerbeek and stumbled upon other elements in an adjoining apartment occupied by Lemaire.
There, they discovered around €280,000 in cash, stored in plastic boxes and envelopes and scattered around the property. Arena is not implicated in the drug trafficking case.
The discovery led detectives to examine Lemaire's activities and what prosecutors suspect was a cannabis trafficking network operating between Spain and Belgium until 2023.
According to La Dernière Heure (DH), Lemaire made around ten trips between Brussels and Barcelona between 2018 and 2023. Investigators also seized GPS trackers, three vehicles registered in Belgium, Spain and Bulgaria, cannabis resin, computer equipment and documents.
Detectives also found a French identity card reported stolen in Barcelona in 2019, apparently bearing Lemaire's photograph.
Lemaire was questioned in December 2023 and exercised his right to remain silent. He and five other suspects were subsequently detained in February 2024 as part of the investigation.
The investigation has since been completed, and the case was referred to the Brussels Criminal Court at the end of August. The Brussels Public Prosecutor's Office confirmed the following charges: 14 offences, including the import, export and transportation of drugs, the sale and supply of drugs, possession and acquisition of drugs, and leadership of a criminal organisation.
The case is scheduled to be heard on 5 November.
Lemaire is one of two defendants alleged to have led the criminal organisation, La DH reports, citing trusted sources. The prosecutor's quoted confirmation does not itself identify Lemaire as one of the alleged leaders.
Lemaire is also a co-founder of BRC & Co, a company specialising in legal CBD products. According to La DH, the company is not implicated in the proceedings.
Contacted by The Brussels Times, lawyers Denis Bosquet and Maxime Nardone confirmed that they represent Lemaire in the proceedings but declined to comment on the case.
