Europol’s Most Wanted Drug Lord Plays Soccer Match in Morocco, Evades Capture

Abdellah El Haj Sadek El Menbri, known as "Messi", participated last week in the match that pitted his Wydad de Tanger team (3rd division) against that of Fnideq. And guess what? He left as he came, without being bothered by the authorities, even though he is accused of being one of the most important traffickers of Moroccan hashish to Europe. The wanted notice is still visible on the Europol website.

Abdellah El Haj Sadek El Menbri, better known by the nickname "The Messi of hashish", is among the most wanted criminals by Europol. This Moroccan runs a vast drug trafficking network, mainly of hashish, operating in the Strait of Gibraltar and beyond. Despite the close ties that favor his concealment, his name tops the "Europe’s Most Wanted. Game over" list, an initiative of the European Network of Fugitive Active Search Teams, aimed at seeking public help for his capture, reported Diario de Sevilla a few weeks ago.

At 40 years old, Abdellah is the head of the largest hashish trafficking organization in Spain, particularly active in the Campo de Gibraltar region. Accused of illegal drug trafficking, money laundering and possession of firearms, he orchestrates the transport of drugs from Morocco to the Andalusian coasts using zodiacs, powerful boats.

His criminal career began in 1983 in Tangier. After moving to Algeciras at the age of 14, he quickly became involved in the hashish trade. His nickname, inspired by his passion for football, shows a lesser-known facet of his life, marked by appearances in Andalusian regional division matches and frequent visits to the Santiago Bernabéu stadium.

In 2015, after a brief period of incarceration, Abdellah returned to Morocco to establish companies suspected of serving to launder his illicit income. Despite his comings and goings between Morocco and Spain to manage his illegal activities, he manages to negotiate his return to Spain, thus avoiding a long prison sentence in exchange for a bail of 80,000 euros.

This agreement, considered scandalous, nevertheless allowed Messi to continue his lucrative operations. Under increasing pressure from law enforcement, he finally decided to flee in 2017, claiming to seek peace away from the attention of the Spanish authorities.