BRUSSELS – A Brussels criminal court has released five out of six suspects arrested for cocaine smuggling in January, it was reported on Tuesday.

The six were detained after one of the biggest anti-drugs operations ever carried out in Belgium, “La Derniere Heure” newspaper said.

They were believed to have smuggled three tonnes of cocaine into Belgium in the course of a year, a crime they apparently admitted to when being questioned by police.

But today only the gang leader remains in custody.

His five accomplices were released on 14 July after spending just five and a half months in jail, even though they remain accused of the crime.

According to La Derniere Heure, no-one seems to be able to explain why the five suspects were released.

The newspaper also pointed out that three men smuggling the soft drug haschisch were recently given prison sentences of 5, 6 and 7 years.

[Copyright Expatica 2004]

Subject: Belgian news