The man is suspected of having engaged in several large cocaine transports from South America to the Netherlands in 2020. According to the police, tons of coke were transported.
The information about the transports emerged in messages on the Sky ECC platform, which was taken offline by the Dutch authorities in March 2021. This gave investigative services access to millions of encrypted messages from criminals.
The police did not announce the arrest earlier because the suspect was in restrictions. As a result, he was only allowed to have contact with his lawyer. The man is still in custody.
During searches in homes in Amstelveen and Amsterdam South, which had a link with the suspect, the police found many very exclusive luxury goods and jewelry. Its value is more than half a million euros. Two armored vehicles in which the suspect was traveling were also seized. He said he took advantage of this because the police had informed him that he would be on a death list.