Last week, Antwerp police’s rapid response team arrested a fugitive convicted drug trafficker on his 45th birthday.
The man, identified as Solajman A.A. from Deurne, was a member of the so-called ‘Hotdog gang,’ named after a restaurant owned by one of its members. The gang was responsible for nine cocaine shipments between March 2020 and March 2021. Authorities seized several shipments, including one weighing 1,044 kilograms. The total amount of cocaine the gang imported is unclear but is estimated to be at least three tonnes.
Solajman A.A. failed to turn himself in after being sentenced to six years in prison for cocaine trafficking and participating in a criminal organisation in January. Consequently, the Antwerp public prosecutor’s office issued an order to locate him, which led to his arrest by the rapid response team on 13 June and subsequent transfer to Antwerp prison.
Two days later, on 15 June, police arrested another man, aged 40, who was wanted for similar crimes. He had also been sentenced in January for his involvement in the criminal organisation and has since been transferred to the same prison in Antwerp.
