Cocaine trial Düsseldorf: Court releases estate agent on bail
Düsseldorf regional court has suspended the arrest warrant against an estate agent accused of importing twelve tonnes of cocaine. The verdict is expected next Tuesday.
Twelve tonnes of cocaine, 100 million euros – but defendant released
Düsseldorf regional court has unexpectedly suspended the arrest warrant during ongoing proceedings against an estate agent, according to n-tv. The 34-year-old is permitted to leave pre-trial detention but must deposit a bail of 250,000 euros, surrender his passport and report daily to police.
According to the indictment, the agent is alleged to have imported twelve tonnes of cocaine from South America since 2016 together with four other men – with a total value of approximately 100 million euros. The group is also alleged to have traded in cannabis and firearms. Four alleged accomplices remain at large and are being sought by police.
In the course of proceedings, it became apparent that the large-scale cocaine trafficking cannot be conclusively proven against the defendant. Although conversations conducted via encrypted mobile phones were decrypted, the devices were used by several persons. A definitive assignment of who wrote the crucial messages would not be possible, it was stated.
A complicating factor for the prosecution: some of the communication was conducted in Serbian, said one of the defence attorneys – a language which the 34-year-old states he does not speak.
By contrast, the defendant admitted to cannabis dealing on a kilogramme scale. His 31-year-old wife acknowledged in court that she had passed on 12.8 kilograms of cannabis and received 45,000 euros for it.
At the end of February, special forces had searched the defendant's house in Ratingen near Düsseldorf and arrested him. In any case, he will not escape without penalty: the judge stated that the 34-year-old must reckon with a prison sentence of just under four to just under five years. The verdict is expected to be announced next Tuesday.
Source: n-tv