Spain accidentally releases notorious drug lord from prison

Karim Bouyakhrichan, the leader of the Mocro Maffia drug cartel, has been released from a Spanish prison. Earlier, the Netherlands filed an extradition request for the arrested person.

Karim 'Taxi' Bouyakhrichan was arrested in Spain in January this year. Along with five other members of the Mocro Maffia group, he was arrested on charges of money laundering through the purchase of 172 properties in Spain worth more than 50 million euros. According to Spanish media reports, the man was released due to an oversight by Spanish authorities overseeing the arrested.

In the Netherlands, Bouyakhrichan threatened to kill Princess Amalia and Prime Minister Mark Rutte. The 46-year-old billionaire drug lord was one of the most wanted criminals in Europe. Interpol had been pursuing the man for at least five years.

The Dutch-Moroccan gang Mocro Maffia was founded by Samir Bouyakhrichan, Karim's older brother. Samir was shot dead in 2014, and his younger brother took control of the group. However, Karim was detained last January in the city of Marbella in connection with the purchase of Spanish estates.

Upon learning of his arrest, the Netherlands filed an extradition request to bring Karim to justice in the Netherlands on drug trafficking-related charges. The court in Madrid approved the request, but the regional court in Marbella refused to execute the request, believing that the drug lord must first answer charges of money laundering in Spain.

The Netherlands appealed this decision and filed another extradition request. This time, dozens of murders in Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain and Morocco (the result of a war between the Mocro Maffia and several drug clans) were added to the drug trafficking charges.

However, Spain did not have time to respond to the Netherlands' second request as it turned out that the Marbella court did not ensure that the suspect remained in custody until any decisions were made. He was released on bail in the amount of 50 thousand euros (!), although he was accused of laundering 50 million euros.

The drug lord's whereabouts are currently unknown. In Madrid, officials from the Ministry of Justice say they "hope for the suspect's arrest as soon as possible."

In 2022, Dutch Princess Amalia was forced into hiding when police received information that  Bouyakhrichan might have planned her kidnapping or murder. Among his potential targets was also Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte.

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