Feared Dutch drug lord Ridouan Taghi sentenced to life in mega-trial
Al Jazeera
The 46-year-old and his associates were guilty of several murders, judges ruled, concluding a years-long trial.
Dutch mob boss Ridouan Taghi and 16 accomplices have been convicted of six murders in a mass trial codenamed Marengo in the Netherlands.
Taghi was acquitted on Tuesday of one of the killings, but handed a life sentence for the rest, concluding the years-long case.
Since being arrested in Dubai – and then extradited – in 2019, the now 46-year-old has been held under maximum security in the Netherlands.
Held in a fortified Amsterdam court known as De Bunker, patrolled by drones and commandos, the trial marks a first in Dutch criminal history – everyone involved, from law enforcement to the forensics team, has been kept anonymous. It is also the country’s largest-ever trial.
Taghi, Together with Irish, Italian and Bosnian drug traffickers, was considered part of a “super-cartel”, directing cocaine shipments to Europe.
