Ten Colombians processed cocaine in a warehouse between Kruisland and Steenbergen. They slept in tents and a gypsy wagon among the hazardous materials. Their process has started but it takes time, because of the language and because there are so many of them. The men are having a hard time. They miss their family and children. One has leprosy and he would like something for the pain.
Some suspects were in winter coats in the dock on Thursday. One of them was wearing wool gloves. They seemed to be cold, the Colombians. Far from home and misunderstood. Few behind the prison walls speak their language.
Spanish
On Thursday, they mainly had to rely on two Spanish interpreters in the room. They translated everything that was said into their microphone. The suspects received a headset with a receiver from the public prosecutor to pick up their mother tongue and to understand what was happening.
The men had been brought in by vans from prisons all over the country: from Middelburg to Roermond and from Alphen, Krimpen and Rotterdam to Vught. A few suspects preferred to remain in cell and did not appear in the room.
Leprosy
“Todos setiender?”, one of the interpreters translated. Everything works, suspects Jose, Milton, William and Eric nodded calmly and politely. Jose is the oldest. Born 67 years ago in the interior of Colombia, between Bogota and Cali. Jose was in the lab for a day and a half, by his own admission. Then everyone heard him say ‘fabrication of cocaina’. Directly translates as “I wasn’t making coke. I was there just to cook.”
After these four, another group with their lawyers followed. Diego, Edison, Mario, Jorge, Luis and Jesus. Extra attention was requested for Luis because he suffers from leprosy. The pain increases. “He needs treatment,” his lawyer said. The officer promised that he would raise it again with the prison.
‘Exploitation’
DNA of nine out of ten Colombians has been found in the shed. Their lawyers continued to insist that they were forced to work there: exploitation. But the officer disagreed. “The gentlemen were not locked up at all. They were able to leave.”
The officer charges them all the same. They were the only ones inside and knew what they were doing there. “A cocaine laundromat is the holy place, the altar of the organization. That’s a place that you keep secret.” To add later: “The sleeping options were not intended for tourists to see Steenbergen.”
Zeeland lab
The officer had another small piece of news: DNA of one of the men was previously found: in a drug lab just across the provincial border in Oud-Vossemeer, in 2019.
Important parts of the file, codenamed Koraalbaars, are now being translated into Spanish. The court is still struggling with its own agenda. There are two days scheduled for the entire trial in January, which is pretty tight for the trial of ten people.
van in
The men did have a request at the hearing: they would like to visit the family. Milton asked if he could celebrate Christmas at home. Later that day, the court rejected that request. They all remain in custody, partly because of the flight risk. And so they left the court again in detainee vans, as they had come, back to their cells. After an interim session of about a day.
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