Costa case: 60 suspects appear in court
November 11, 2023

The judge in Tongeren (B) decided on Friday that 60 suspects in the "Costa" drug case will be tried by the criminal court. Two lawyers and seven others have not been prosecuted. Maasmechelaar Lucio Aquino, ex-gendarmerie Willy Van Mechelen, the Dutchman “Bolle Jos” Leijdekkers and Geert Frisson, chairman of motorcycle club Bandidos, must answer for large transports of cocaine.

25 tons of cocaine
Belgian justice states that the suspects smuggled a total of about 25 tons of cocaine into Belgium.

The first case dates back to 2019, when 2,800 kilos of cocaine were discovered in a container filled with tropical wood from Costa Rica. This was followed by searches, including at Lucio Aquino's.

Sky ECC
Because the police managed to crack the SKY-ECC encryption service, detectives were able to read how former National Guard Willy Van Mechelen maintained contacts with criminal organizations such as the Aquino clan and the group around Geert Frisson and “Bolle Jos”.

In October 2021, there were further searches in Belgian Limburg and in the Netherlands and Spain.

Basketball player
The Dutchman “Bolle Jos” is on the run. He is held responsible for the import of 1,340 kilos of cocaine, together with Nathan Steveniers, the son of the Belgian basketball player Willy Steveniers. Jos Leijdekkers is suspected in the Netherlands of ordering murder and large-scale import of cocaine.