A former Champions League star and Serie A winner has been arrested after police raided 30 houses in a cocaine smuggling investigation in Belgium.
Former Inter Milan midfielder Radja Nainggolan was arrested as part of a police investigation into cocaine smuggling.
The 36-year-old midfielder was one of several suspects apprehended by Belgian police on Monday morning after a series of raids on properties took place across the country, connected to an investigation into smuggling drugs from South America through the port of Antwerp.
A statement from the Brussels public prosecutor’s office said: "The federal judicial police of Brussels carried out 30 house searches on Monday morning in the context of a file from the Organized Crime department of the Brussels public prosecutor’s office.
"The house searches mainly took place in the province of Antwerp and in Brussels. The investigation concerns suspected facts of importing cocaine from South America to Europe, via the port of Antwerp, and its redistribution in Belgium.
"We can confirm that the footballer RN (Radja Nainggolan) was deprived of his liberty in the context of that case.
"Given that the interrogations are currently underway, and in compliance with the principle of presumption of innocence, no further comment will be made at this stage."
Outlet GVA in Belgium reported that Nainggolan’s lawyer Omar Souidi is travelling to support his client. The report also states the 30-time Belgium international had his Smart Brabus car towed away.
Nainggolan joined second-tier side Lokeren-Temse last Tuesday and scored on his debut on Friday to salvage a point in a 1-1 draw. His new club confirmed he had missed training and will not be involved in Tuesday’s match, although he was ineligible to feature anyway due to the game being a rearranged fixture from earlier in the season.
Lokeren-Temse said: "Since the investigation is still ongoing, the police services do not want to and cannot make any further comment.
"They respect the principle of presumption of innocence. As a club, we agree with this. We can only confirm that the player was absent from training this morning."
Nainggolan has had a controversial history and admitted to struggling with alcohol and smoking. In 2017, the footballer had his driving license withdrawn after driving at four times the legal alcohol limit. He was also suspended by his former club Antwerp in 2022 for vaping an e-cigarette on the bench.
The midfielder has played the majority of his career in Italy, joining Inter Milan in 2018 after a four-year spell at Roma, where he was named their Player of the Season for 2016/17. Nainggolan was a part of the Inter team that won the Serie A in 2021 and has since lifted the Belgian Pro League with Anderlecht in 2023.
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