Five Serbian Nationals Arrested in Belgium for Weapons Traffickin

Published: 18 April 2012

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Fiver Serbian citizens have been arrested in an operation against an international weapons trafficking ring in Brussels, the Belgian Federal Prosecutor’s Office said Tuesday. Three Turkish nationals were also arrested. 

Belgian police began investigating late last year after learning that Belgian and foreign organized crime groups were buying weapons and explosives in Brussels. The authorities quickly learned that Serbian citizens were supplying the network. 

Through international police cooperation, authorities tracked the transport of weapons from Serbia through Hungary, Austria, Germany, and the Netherlands. When the weapons finally arrived to Belgium, the police arrested the three people transporting them, and five other people. 

The Belgian police sized 10 unassembled automatic rifles, 10 hand grenades, two hand guns, two rocket launchers, and 300 rounds of ammunition. The transport vehicle was equipped with a special “bunker” for the weapons.

Serbian Interior Minister Ivica Dacic told Tanjug news that more arrests are imminent. He added that the Belgian authorities have thanked the Serbian police for their help.