A court in Brabant Wallon delivered its verdict on Friday in a case involving cannabis trafficking within Ittre prison during 2022 and 2023.
Two brothers, both inmates at the prison, received drugs during family visits and resold them to fellow prisoners. Payments from buyers’ relatives were deposited into the bank account of the brothers’ sister.
Each brother has been sentenced to 30 months in prison, with probation conditions attached. The conditions include a ban on drug use.
One brother, aged 26, has 35 prior criminal convictions, while the other has 14 previous offences. Both have been convicted before for drug trafficking.
Their sister and mother, who have no prior criminal records, were also charged for procuring drugs and facilitating the trafficking within the prison.
At trial, defence lawyers criticised the contradiction in attitudes towards drug use in prison, suggesting authorities prefer detainees using cannabis to those expressing anger over their detention conditions.
The sentences handed to the brothers align with the prosecutor’s recommendations. Meanwhile, the sister and mother received community service sentences of 120 hours and 50 hours respectively.
