Five Antwerp Jewelers Arrested in International Stolen Gold Ring
Five jewelers from Antwerp’s famed diamond district have been arrested as part of an international crackdown on a sophisticated criminal network that stole gold, jewelry, and luxury watches in France, melted them down, and smuggled the proceeds to Belgium for resale. In total, 19 suspects were taken into custody during coordinated raids across Paris, Charleroi, and Antwerp on May 27–28, 2026, according to Eurojust, the European Union Agency for Criminal Justice Cooperation.
A Nine-Month Investigation
The investigation was launched in September 2025 by police in Versailles, France, under the direction of a French investigating judge. Authorities tracked more than 135 trips between Paris and Charleroi, Belgium, between September 2025 and May 2026 — more than two shipments per week. As VRT NWS reported, members of the criminal network traveled in convoys, using vehicles equipped with hidden compartments to evade police checks.
French authorities requested judicial cooperation with Belgium through Eurojust, and a Joint Investigation Team (JIT) was established. The Belgian Public Prosecutor’s Office confirmed that the investigation identified two distinct criminal groups — one linked to more than 80 trips and another to more than 55 trips.
The Smuggling Route
The stolen goods followed a well-established route: from Paris to Charleroi in southern Belgium, where an intermediary received the merchandise, and then onward to Antwerp’s diamond district for sale. According to RTBF, Charleroi served purely as a transit hub, with the stolen precious metals, jewelry, diamonds, and watches ultimately destined for the Antwerp jewelry trade.
Raids and Seizures
On May 28, the Federal Judicial Police of Antwerp, supported by local police, conducted 11 house searches across the city. Five men aged 34 to 58, all working as jewelers, were arrested. During one raid, officers discovered two smelting machines and equipment for dismantling jewelry.
The seizures were substantial: more than 6 kg of melted gold bars valued at approximately €700,000, a silver bar, a large quantity of old jewelry, loose diamonds, approximately 60 luxury watches, blank Rolex and Audemars Piguet certificates, and roughly €63,000 in cash. In France, searches yielded nearly €10,000 in cash, jewelry-making equipment, and luxury goods.
Two of the arrested jewelers, aged 55 and 56, were remanded by the investigating judge, with the Antwerp council chamber scheduled to decide on their continued detention on June 3.
The Serbian Connection
Paris Prosecutor Laure Beccau revealed that French investigators identified “two brothers of Serbian origin and their families” as the leaders of the network. According to Beccau, the brothers possessed “significant real estate holdings, despite declaring no professional activity,” and had plans for acquisitions in Dubai and cryptocurrency holdings, with total assets estimated at several million euros.
Broader Arrests
In addition to the five Antwerp jewelers, five people were arrested in Charleroi, including an intermediary suspected of transporting stolen goods. Two European Arrest Warrants were issued by French authorities. Two women belonging to the intermediary’s entourage were also arrested in the Antwerp region, suspected of fencing and participation in a criminal organization. Nine arrests were made in France.
Analysis: A Sophisticated Operation
The case reveals a highly organized criminal network with multiple layers: street-level thieves in France, logistics specialists operating convoy vehicles with hidden compartments, intermediaries in Charleroi, and retail facilitators in Antwerp with industrial smelting capabilities. The seizure of blank luxury watch certificates suggests the network may have been preparing counterfeit documentation to resell stolen watches on legitimate markets.
As NOS noted, the involvement of legitimate jewelers in Antwerp’s diamond district — a hub handling billions of euros in diamonds and jewelry annually — highlights the vulnerability of high-value trading centers to infiltration by organized crime.
What’s Next
The full valuation of the seized cash and jewelry is ongoing. The Antwerp council chamber is expected to rule on the continued detention of the two remanded suspects. The case marks another demonstration of the effectiveness of Eurojust-facilitated Joint Investigation Teams in tackling cross-border organized crime across EU member states.