Noord-Brabant families most likely to have multiple members linked to drug crimes

Families with two or more members suspected of a drug crime are most common in Noord-Brabant of all the Dutch provinces. The province has 5,500 residents suspected of drug crimes, with a family member also suspected of a drug offense. In the Noord-Brabant village of Nuenen, 62 percent of drug suspects have a family member also suspected of a drug crime, RTL Nieuws reports based on figures from the government platform View on Undermining.

Across the Netherlands, 36 percent of drug suspects between 2012 and 2020 also had a family member suspected of a drug offense. This mainly concerned partners, but for 6 percent, it was siblings, and for almost 5 percent, children.

The highest percentage of “drug crime families” don’t occur in the Randstad, but in smaller towns and villages like Nuenen, Duiven in Gelderland (61 percent), and Pekela in Groningen (53 percent). Historian and crime researcher Hans Moors finds that logical. “In villages, you see that the family continues to live together. They form a larger share of the population, so you see more family connections,’ he said to RTL.

Criminal family ties are most common under the rivers - of the 20 municipalities with the highest percentages, nine are from Noord-Brabant. Over 5,500 drug suspects with a family member also tied to drug crimes live in the province.