Gang using crocodiles to guard drug money get prison time

The court in Amsterdam sentenced 10 people to up to thee years in prison, up to 240 hours of community services and fines totaling in 10 thousand euros for large-scale drug trafficking and other drug related charges. The gang is best known for using crocodiles to guard their loot, Het Parool reports.

The suspects are seven men and three women between the ages of 24 and 61 years. They were arrested in February last year. Six were convicted of trafficking and dealing in hard drugs including crystal meth, cocaine, amphetamine and GHB. The other four worked as couriers, packers and stock managers. They had over 200 clients.

When raiding homes and premises of some of the suspects last year, the police found cash money ranging in amounts from a few thousand to 200 thousand euros, weapons, ammunition and a cannabis plantation. But the most remarkable find was two crocodiles guarding large amounts of money in an Amsterdam warehouse.

Prime suspect Roel D., 56 years old from Amsterdam, was sentenced to three years in prison, six months of which conditionally suspended. The file against him paints the picture that D. introduced crystal meth to Amsterdam. The man himself calls this "insane". "I could buy 40 grams on the chat sites, do you really think that before me there was no crystal meth in Amsterdam?" he said in court.

During the investigation, D. gave the police a partial confession. He said that he began selling "drug remedies" in the "gay scene" and that his trade became "somewhat bigger" than expected.

The other chief suspect, a 30-year-old man, was given 24 months in prison, six of which conditionally suspended. He was responsible for selling and delivering the drugs.