Former Belgium footballer Radja Nainggolan has been arrested as part of investigation into a cocaine trafficking case into Europe from South America as the Brussels Public Prosecutor issued a statement about the same. The same prosecutors announced that a total of 16 people were arrested in relation to the case.
The officials from Brussels Federal Police carried out thirty searches on Monday morning and went deeper in Antwerp, thereby seizing 2.7 kilos of cocaine alongside cash and a massive number of luxury items. The search included the officials seizing over 3,70,000 euros in cash, a handful of luxury watches, two of them that carried a value of 360,000 euros each.
There was also jewellery and gold coins, the value of which were over 1,16,000 euros. The cops also discovered two bulletproof vests and three firearms.
Radja Nainggolan’s club issues cryptic statement following his arrest
Nainggolan, 36, spent several months without a club and withdrew his retirement to play for the second-tier Belgian team Lokeren-Temse. The veteran footballer notably scored a goal on his first appearance for the club. He featured in 30 matches for the national team.
Lokeren-Temse revealed that they found out about his arrest only after it emerged in the media as a statement by India Today said:
“The club respects the presumption of innocence and therefore cannot comment further. We can only confirm that the player was absent from training this morning. The club will continue to focus on tomorrow’s crucial league match against KAS Eupen. Radja Nainggolan is not eligible to play in that match anyway.”
Nainggolan also faced a disciplinary issue when he was part of Roma in 2018 when he was axed from the squad for some drunken postings live on New Year’s Eve.