Dubai Drug Lord Extradited: Belgium Cracks Down on Cocaine Kingpin’s Luxurious Hideout

The extradition of this powerful drug trafficker was made possible thanks to the extradition treaty between Belgium and the United Arab Emirates, signed in December 2021 and entered into force in November 2022. "There is now a deep and constructive collaboration with the United Arab Emirates. Three ’High Value Targets’ are therefore on their way from the United Arab Emirates to our country to be tried and punished," said Annelies Verlinden, the Belgian Minister of Justice.

"We do not want drug traffickers to be able to take refuge in places where they can live a luxurious life with impunity. The absence of extradition treaties and the possibility of investing anonymously in real estate have long allowed these criminals to evade justice. They have built a luxurious life there while they are wanted, prosecuted or convicted in Belgium for large-scale drug trafficking, often linked to the port of Antwerp," she added.

Othman El Ballouti was arrested at the end of 2024 in Dubai. The hacking of the encrypted Sky ECC messaging system he used to communicate with other members of his network revealed the existence of international drug trafficking networks, including Antwerp-based ones. The drug trafficker was sentenced last September to seven years in prison for having introduced 840 kilos of cocaine into Belgium through the port of Antwerp. He had also been sentenced to 20 years in prison for a shipment of 11 tons seized in 2021, recalls La Libre.

These networks are also specialized in money laundering and organized crime. They have invested millions of euros in real estate in the Middle East, through front companies, making it difficult to trace criminal assets. "The extradition of these criminals is much more than a simple step in criminal proceedings. [...] The cooperation between Belgium and the United Arab Emirates proves that diplomacy, technology and legal coordination are powerful tools in the fight against organized crime," said Annelies Verlinden.