Drug Lord Who Plotted to Kill Dutch Heir Released From Prison by Mistake

An infamous cartel lord named Karim Bouyakhrichan has managed to evade Spanish authorities.

Following a five-year investigation into money laundering, Ridouan Taghi, the Dutch-Moroccan head of the Mocro Maffia, was apprehended in Marbella in January. The Dutch government has asked the National Court in Spain to extradite the gang leader so that he may face accusations arising from his drug trade empire in the Netherlands. A Dutch extradition request was mixed up, leading to Bouyakhrichan’s unintentional release.

It was reported last month that he went on the run.

As one of Europe’s most wanted offenders, Bouyakhrichan was pursued by Interpol for a minimum of five years. Before his murder in 2014, his brother Samir was wanted for his alleged role in establishing a Dutch-Moroccan organization known as Mocro Maffia. Afterward, Bouyakhrichan supposedly took control.

While the Madrid National Court approved the extradition, the Málaga Provincial Court voted against it, citing that the drug lord must first face money laundering accusations in Spain.

The Dutch government contested the decision by submitting a new, time-sensitive request, highlighting the fact that the cartel leader was a wanted criminal on Interpol’s wanted list due to his involvement in a global drug battle that had raged for ten years. According to Spain’s Cadena SER radio network, the National Court granted the Dutch appeal but failed to issue a detention order to keep Bouyakhrichan in prison until the extradition occurred.

Dutch Princess Amalia was forced to leave her student housing complex and return to the royal palace in 2022 due to convincing information that Bouyakhrichan had plotted the abduction or murder of the future heir to the kingdom. According to Dutch news outlet De Telegraaf, Bouyakhrichan reportedly has caretaker Prime Minister Mark Rutte on his list of potential high-profile targets. Enforcing stricter security measures to ensure her and other political leaders’ safety is likely necessary for the cartel boss’s release.