Drug baron Othman El Ballouti caught with a phone in his cell
Drug baron Othman El Ballouti, incarcerated in the Bruges prison under a reinforced security regime, was caught in possession of a mobile phone during a check. This discovery raises questions about the effectiveness of the surveillance of high-security inmates in Belgium.
According to the newspaper De Morgen, the device was seized last Monday and is currently undergoing technical analysis. The investigation must determine the content of the communications as well as the method of introduction of the terminal into the prison. This security breach is considered worrying by the authorities, given the profile of the inmate and his presumed influence on criminal networks from his cell.
Othman El Ballouti was extradited from the United Arab Emirates during the summer of 2025, after being arrested in Dubai at the request of the Belgian justice system. He is serving a 27-year prison sentence handed down by the Antwerp Criminal Court for his involvement in several cases of cocaine importation. The individual is also the uncle of the young Firdaous, killed at the age of 11 during a shooting in Merksem in 2023, a tragedy linked to conflicts between drug traffickers.
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