Profits From Drug Trade Under Scrutiny
Belgian prosecutors have opened a major case against Flor Bressers, alleged to have overseen a sprawling cocaine pipeline into Europe. Authorities argue that Bressers alone secured about €230m from ten shipments, while Brazilian co-defendant Sérgio Roberto de Carvalho is said to have accumulated close to €200m. In total, officials believe the criminal organisation generated around €500m.
Rotterdam Discovery Sparked Inquiry
The case traces back to 2020, when customs officers in Rotterdam uncovered 3.2 tonnes of cocaine stashed within a load of manganese ore. Investigators linked the cargo to a wider smuggling structure that, they claim, relied on Europe’s busiest ports to move narcotics on a massive scale. For security reasons, the hearings have been relocated from Bruges to the fortified Justitia courthouse in Brussels.
Key Figures Arrested Abroad
Bressers was arrested in Zurich in early 2022 before being extradited to Belgium later that year. De Carvalho was captured in Hungary in 2023. Among the 30 accused are a Dutch attorney and a former London-based banker, suspected of handling the network’s illicit finances. Defence teams have indicated they will challenge the prosecution’s profit assessments and dispute allegations that their clients directed the organisation.
