Former Belgian footballer, Radja Nainggolan has reportedly been arrested for alleged involvement in cocaine smuggling.
According to a report by Corriere della Sera, the former AS Roma midfielder was allegedly part of a smuggling operation transporting cocaine from South America to Antwerp.
The Brussels public prosecutor’s office confirmed Nainggolan’s arrest as part of a large-scale raid on 30,000 houses in Antwerp and Brussels on Monday, January 27, 2025.
“The federal judicial police of Brussels carried out thirty house searches on Monday morning in the context of a case from the Organized Crime department of the Brussels public prosecutor’s office. The searches mainly took place in the province of Antwerp and in Brussels.”
“The investigation concerns suspected activities related to the importation of cocaine from South America to Europe via the port of Antwerp, as well as its distribution in Belgium. We can confirm that the footballer RN (Radja Nainggolan) has been taken into custody in connection with this case,” the statement read as quoted by UK outlet, Daily Mail.
“Given that interrogations are ongoing, and in compliance with the principle of presumption of innocence, no further comment will be made at this stage.”
Nainggolan, 36, currently plays for Lokeren-Temse, a lower-tier club in Belgium. He rose to prominence during his time in Italy, representing clubs such as Inter Milan, AS Roma, and Cagliari.
The former midfielder announced his retirement from international football in 2018 after being omitted from Belgium’s squad for the FIFA World Cup that year.
EE/EK
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