It's about cocaine smuggling! Ex-first division star arrested in major raid
Brussels (Belgium) - From the spotlight to the investigators' sights! Radja Nainggolan (36) once played for Europe's top clubs and was one of the defining figures of Belgium's "golden generation". But the dazzling façade of a gifted footballer is crumbling and the professional footballer is now facing serious allegations.
According to several media reports, the 36-year-old has been arrested as part of a large-scale raid. Specifically, the arrest was on suspicion of drug trafficking.
According to the daily newspaper De Standaard, house searches were carried out across the country due to cocaine smuggling from South America, including the premises of the 30-time international.
"As part of a case of the organized crime department of the Brussels public prosecutor's office, which was entrusted to a Brussels investigating judge, the criminal police carried out 30 searches on Monday morning," the public prosecutor's office explained following the search operation this Monday morning, without, however, mentioning the name of the arrested professional.
"As the hearings are currently underway and in line with the principle of the presumption of innocence, no further comment will be made at this stage," no further details were given as the investigation got underway.
Nainggolan played in the Italian Serie A for years and was under contract with AS Roma and reigning champions Inter Milan, among others. He left for Indonesia in 2023, playing for Bhayangkara Presisi Indonesia FC for a year - but left in the summer of 2024 and was without a club in the meantime.
Last week, he joined KSC Lokeren-Temse and has been on the pitch for the local second division club ever since.
Cocaine smuggling in Belgium cannot be stopped
The authorities in Belgium are cracking down on cross-border, organized drug crime. Although there have been isolated successes in the fight against the illegal trade, the flourishing business cannot be contained.
Around 40 percent of cocaine arrives in Europe via the port of the Belgian city of Antwerp alone. Last year, customs officers confiscated around 116 tons of the drug.