In reaction to 22 shootings that took place in Brussels Since the beginning of January, the Brussels public prosecutor’s office, the Brussels federal judicial police and the heads of the three police zones most particularly concerned wanted to return on Tuesday to their joint approach to drug trafficking. All point to bottom-end traffic.
Criminal investigations are quite complex
“In recent months, there has been a significant number of acts of violence on the public highway. With a few exceptions, these incidents seem to be linked to drug trafficking. Criminal investigations are quite complex, among other things because we cannot count on the cooperation of the victim, who often knows the context of the facts but is not ready to give us details“, first explained the Brussels King’s prosecutor, Tim De Wolf. He assured that ballistic examinations were systematically carried out and that the investigations are reaping results. Several suspects have thus already been placed in preventive detention.
“All of the facts observed are not, however, to be placed in the same context.“, he continued. “Sometimes there are ‘clusters’ of related incidents, but there is no single criminal organization behind all the incidents.“.
The recent shootings resulted, on the one hand, from tensions between street dealers and, on the other hand, from settling scores. Depending on the case, the investigations were entrusted to the federal police or to the local police. Consultations and collaborations are implemented with the judiciary for the sale of narcotics, arms trafficking or even for urban gangs.
“The police are and will remain present everywhere”
If Tim De Wolf admits that “there is little hope of completely eradicating drug trafficking”, he assures that this remains a priority and that procedures have recently been optimized to compensate for staffing shortages. “This phenomenon is constantly evolving and therefore our methods are also changing. We will never agree to have lawless zones. The police are and will remain everywhere”.
The head of the Brussels-Ixelle police forcesMichel Goovaerts, said he remains hopeful in view of the arrests that closely follow the incidents.
Alongside the Brussels-West corps commander, Luc Ysebaert, the Brussels-Midi corps commander, Jurgen De Landsheer, added to also attack “small nuisances related to drug trafficking”.
Other cities affected
Eric Jacobs, director of the Federal Judicial Police (PJF) in Brussels, said that of the 22 shootings recorded this year, one led to the death of one person, 14 injured one person and one injured two people. “What we are experiencing today, we have already seen in other European cities. It started in the Netherlands, you know the situation in Antwerp and today we are experiencing a particular situation here. Already in 2020, the heads of zone, the prosecutor and the PJF met to make a global ‘Narcotics’ plan and develop an approach by district“.
He pointed out that most of the shootings and stabbings are local facts involving urban gangs. “There are a few exceptions that we are dealing with at the PJF level, including a case linked to the Albanian mafia (shooting on Place De Brouckère, Ed.)”he specified.
“For some files, we can make links with Sky ECC (the communication network that was used by criminals before being decrypted by the authorities, editor’s note.), but in Brussels we mainly have local struggles for territories, in a crime that is on a lower level… Cocaine still brings another type of violence”.