Three suspects have been arrested and 63 blocks of cocaine (estimated value of €1,575,000) have been seized in a police operation against cocaine trafficking in Anderlecht, the Brussels Public Prosecutor's Office announced on Friday.
The large-scale police operation was carried out to stop cocaine trafficking in Anderlecht's Aumale district (close to Saint Guidon) on Thursday 20 March. It is one of the city's so-called "hotspots": places in the Brussels-Capital Region that the police are keeping a close eye on for drug trafficking and drug-related nuisance.
"Part of this illegal shipment was hidden in a searched apartment, while the rest was hidden in a converted compartment of a vehicle used by the suspects," the Brussels Public Prosecutor's Office said in a press release.
The suspects are being brought before the investigating judge for acts of possession and sale of narcotics, in association.
The Brussels Times learned from a source close to the case that it concerned a so-called "rip deal," in which one criminal party (in this case a Moroccan gang) steals drugs and/or money from another one (in this case, Albanians).
By seizing the drugs, the police likely prevented another shooting from taking place in the district.
The police action was carried out by the ninth Investigation Division (OA9) of the Federal Judicial Police of Brussels, with the support of the special units and the laboratory of technical and scientific police.
