The Public Prosecution Service demanded 4.5 years in prison on Tuesday against a 46-year-old man from Amsterdam for laundering nearly a million euros and dealing cocaine. After forcing the door, the police found a suitcase and bags full of cash. Before the police could enter the house, the man tried to flush morphine down the toilet and chew a SIM card.
The investigation started based on intercepted communications from the crypto platform Exclu. The chats revealed various users who spoke extensively about dealing cocaine. One of them is Rich Porter, who was arrested by the police on April 28, 2023. When detectives knocked on his door that day, they found a total of €919,470 and a 46-year-old man who was immediately arrested.
Suitcase with cash
In the toilet, the police still see the pieces of morphine that the suspect tried to flush down the toilet. In a bedroom, detectives find a suitcase with €811,310. The DNA of the 46-year-old suspect was found on it. There is also a handwritten note with annotations related to drug dealing. At the bottom of a wardrobe was a paper bag with €78,510, and in another bedroom was a black North Face backpack with another €28,880 and the chewed SIM card. Investigations show that the man had been living in the house for a long time.
Blocks of cocaine
Further investigation into Exclu messages from co-defendant Rich Porter revealed another house that was used for drug dealing. On June 27, 2023, an Action bag with seven blocks of cocaine and a money counting machine was found there. The DNA of the suspect was also found in that house.
The man claims that he has nothing to do with the chewed SIM card, drugs, or the money. The prosecutor of the National Prosecutors Office finds that statement unbelievable.
Earlier, the prosecutor demanded prison sentences of up to eight years for the co-defendants of drug dealing and money laundering.
The court will issue its ruling on March 24, 2025.