At the moment, the Antwerp Court docket of Enchantment sentenced kickboxer Jamal Ben Saddik to 40 months in jail, half suspended, for his function in laundering greater than 1.2 million euros of prison proceeds by way of fraudulent employment contracts, actual property transactions, and digital funds, as a part of a scheme originating within the Netherlands and orchestrated by entrepreneur Karim S., who had beforehand been sentenced for laundering over 2.5 million euros.
Jamal Ben Saddik, his brother Mentioned, and co-defendant Emad N. had been discovered to have acquired important illicit funds, with police uncovering practically 508,000 euros in money and falsified paperwork throughout raids, and all three had been barred from serving as firm administrators and fined because of their prior prison data and involvement as key figures within the laundering operation.
Court docket Upholds Conviction: Jamal Ben Saddik and Co-Defendants Ordered to Pay Fines for Laundering Over €1 Million
The case, which has drawn important media consideration in Belgium, facilities on the laundering of greater than 1.2 million euros in prison proceeds by way of fraudulent employment contracts, actual property transactions, and digital funds.
The investigation originated within the Netherlands, the place authorities focused Karim S., a soccer coach and entrepreneur who operated a complicated cash laundering community. Karim S. accepted money from people with doubtful backgrounds and funneled it again to them as wages or loans, utilizing false employment contracts and pay slips to make the funds seem reputable.
In 2020, Karim S. was sentenced by an Amsterdam court docket to 42 months in jail for laundering over 2.5 million euros. Belgian authorities had been alerted after they found that a good portion of the laundered cash had been transferred to Belgium, with Jamal Ben Saddik, his brother Mentioned, and co-defendant Emad N. recognized as key recipients.
In the course of the investigation, police discovered two suitcases containing 507,950 euros in money hidden in a false backside throughout a raid at Emad N.’s property. The court docket additionally uncovered a spread of falsified paperwork used to disguise the origins of the cash.
All three defendants had been already recognized to Belgian legislation enforcement for earlier prison exercise. Emad N. had a previous conviction for drug offenses, Jamal Ben Saddik was beneath investigation for cash laundering and had been focused in assaults believed to be linked to the drug commerce, whereas Mentioned Ben Saddik had a number of earlier convictions.
The Antwerp Court docket of Enchantment emphasised the gravity of cash laundering as the ultimate hyperlink within the prison chain, stating that crime shouldn’t pay. The court docket additionally took under consideration the defendants’ prior convictions and their skilled roles, declaring all three professionally unreliable and barring them from serving as firm administrators. The laundered sum of 1.23 million euros was confiscated, and the defendants had been fined, Jamal Ben Saddik to the tune of 40,000 euros, Mentioned Ben Saddik 24,000 euros, and Emad N. 16,000 euros.
Jamal Ben Saddik’s authorized troubles are usually not restricted to this case. In 2021, he was briefly imprisoned in reference to the Sky ECC investigation, suspected of promoting encrypted telephones utilized by criminals. In 2022, his household’s properties had been attacked in what was believed to be a dispute associated to the drug commerce. Most just lately, in July 2024, Ben Saddik was arrested on suspicion of kidnapping and assault linked to a battle over a drug cargo, although he denies these allegations and has been conditionally launched pending additional investigation.
Regardless of the continued authorized proceedings, Jamal Ben Saddik stays a outstanding determine on this planet of GLORY kickboxing. He has confronted a number of suspensions for doping violations and in-ring altercations, however his combating profession has been marked by high-profile bouts and notable victories.
