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Shkruar nga Pamfleti
The former criminal lawyer of Antwerp in Belgium, Sahil Malik, was sentenced to 5 years in prison, of which 20 months were suspended, because he had contact with the drug environment. According to the criminal judge, the 33-year-old helped cartels traffic cocaine.
"Sahil Malik grossly abused his position as a lawyer and provided extensive services to a criminal organization in the importation of cocaine from the port of Antwerp," the verdict states.
"He was paid a lot for it. It is clear that he was only looking for huge financial gains and did not care about the risks of his actions," it added.
Malik, born in Antwerp to the son of an Indian textile merchant, was sworn in as a lawyer in November 2013. The young lawyer with the long black beard was quickly named the rising star of Antwerp's legal profession. He protected pickpockets, teenage pimps, a Georgian bank robber and more. But he also protected many drug dealers. In no time he became the favorite lawyer of several key players from the drug scene in Antwerp, such as Yannick 'Flash' W., or Mohammed 'Algerian' C.
Until Malik was suddenly arrested by Antwerp court in March 2021 and jailed for seven months in custody. The Belgian judiciary had recently managed to crack down on the Sky ECC network, with which criminals could secretly communicate and consult with each other. For days, Belgian investigators were able to read conversations between criminals and drug traffickers about how they smuggled cocaine into the port of Antwerp.
Conversations with Albanians
Among them were messages from a certain "Sher". On May 2, 2020, an Albanian trafficker asked "Sher" if he could learn what happened to a shipment of cocaine that was seized at quay 1742. "Sher" replied that he had asked a pensioner whose wife still worked at the port. He could also put the Albanian in contact with the attackers, if he wanted. In other conversations he suggests that he had contacts at customs who could check whether the containers were selected for the scanner or not.
In the end, "Sher" sent an article to the newspaper about the seizure and asked for 25,000 euros for it.
"I was 'Sher'," Malik admitted after his arrest. According to the decision of the criminal court of Antwerp, he was aware of the activities of a drug cartel, and was even actively involved in it. At the request of the leaders, he received the protection of the gang members, just to be able to look at the criminal file and pass information to the cartel. He sent messages to his clients and was an intermediary for financial support. It is learned that the lawyer informed the clan if one of his clients did not adhere to his right to remain silent and continued to talk to the police.
In return, he wanted to be paid a lot, which he called "porridge". "The whole file is in the trash," said "Sher" on September 18, 2020, when he won a lawsuit. "I hope your friends are right and come with a big sports bag." In one case, Malik was paid by his Albanian contact with a Rolex watch, which is said to be worth 32 thousand euros. The investigation by the court of Antwerp revealed that it was a worthless forged copy.
"When he read the conversations, he realized that he was not worthy of the platoon," said the judge. Malik is now disbarred as a lawyer. He was sentenced on Tuesday to 5 years in prison, of which 20 months were suspended, for membership in a criminal organization and money laundering. The court ordered the confiscation of 161 thousand euros. In practice, this means Malik will have to return to prison to serve his sentence. If he appeals, he will not have to go to jail pending a new trial. His lawyer, Louis De Groote, could not confirm on Tuesday whether that appeal will be made.
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