Drug Violence Resurges in Antwerp as Moroccan-Origin Mafia Battles for Control

Incidents have occurred in the municipalities of Deurne and Borgerhout. The target? Homes. This resurgence is linked to drug trafficking, particularly tense due to the pandemic, estimates Moustique. A problem that has been going on for several years. To better understand the problem, the media looks back on its meeting with VRT journalist Stefaan Meerbergen, who made a documentary film on (Drugsmaffia in Antwerpen - Het sociale drama achter de coke) in 2018.

This traffic is in the hands of the Belgian and Dutch mafia of Moroccan origin, whose barons live in Dubai, we are told. The traffic brings them a lot of money. "They invest this black money by building kilometers of Moroccan coast between Tangier and Nador. In Antwerp, they buy apartments, cafes, shisha bars and even nurseries... They are suspected of paying for entire streets," it is explained.

Considered the worst European criminal organization, the "Mocro-Maffia" has expanded its influence on the city. "In certain streets, everyone has a brother, an uncle or a cousin involved in the environment. Drug trafficking has become completely normalized. Young people skip school and quit sports to start dealing. Mothers are at a loss, families are being destroyed," it is reported.

Young people from underprivileged backgrounds perceive dream salaries from drug traffickers: 4,000 to 6,000 euros per month for the small fry, 20,000 for the dealers, 50,000 euros for a docker. "The port of Antwerp alone accounts for 20 to 25% of European cocaine imports," explains Antwerp journalist Joris Van der Aa, the leading expert on the subject.