NACOC arrests 3 suspects linked to Dutch fugitive drug kingpin “Boole Jos” following $260m cocaine seizure in France

The Narcotics Control Commission (NACOC) has arrested three individuals accused of representing and facilitating the operations of Dutch fugitive drug trafficker Jos Leijdekkers, widely known as “Bolle Jos,” within Ghana.

The arrests, announced in a statement signed by PNCO Francis Opoku Amoah, Acting Director of Public Affairs and International Relations, follow the seizure of a massive cocaine shipment by French customs authorities at the port of Dunkirk on September 10 .

According to NACOC, the three suspects are currently in custody and are assisting investigators in establishing their alleged roles in the trafficking operation. The Commission stated that the arrests form part of its ongoing efforts to disrupt international drug-trafficking networks operating in or through Ghana .

“The arrests reaffirm NACOC’s resolve that Ghana will not be a safe haven, transit point or operational base for international drug-trafficking organisations,” the statement read. NACOC added that it would continue working with domestic and international law-enforcement partners to disrupt the people, finances, and infrastructure sustaining the illicit drug trade, while assuring that the rights and legal protections of all persons under investigation would be safeguarded .

The Dunkirk Seizure

The arrests stem from a major interdiction by French authorities. On September 10, French customs officers at the northern port of Dunkirk seized nearly 3.9 metric tonnes of cocaine with an estimated street value of €225 million (approximately US$261.45 million) .

The cocaine was concealed inside a container of plastic waste that had arrived from Ghana. The shipment was initially destined, in part, for Antwerp, Belgium. The drugs have since been destroyed, and French prosecutors have opened an investigation into organised narcotics importation and participation in a criminal association—offences carrying penalties of up to 10 years in prison .

French judicial police had reportedly been targeting the criminal network behind the shipment before the seizure. Dutch and French investigative sources have linked part of the shipment to Leijdekkers’ criminal organisation, though Dutch prosecutors have not independently confirmed his involvement in this specific seizure .

Who Is “Bolle Jos”?

Jos Leijdekkers, a Dutch national, is one of Europe’s most-wanted fugitives. He has been sentenced in absentia in the Netherlands to 24 years in prison for smuggling more than seven tonnes of cocaine and for ordering a murder . In Belgium, he has received cumulative sentences totaling 65 years, including a recent eight-year term for the importation of 11 tonnes of cocaine .

Dutch police have described Leijdekkers as “one of the key players in international cocaine trafficking.” A reward of €200,000—the highest ever offered for a Dutch fugitive—remains in place for information leading to his arrest .

According to Dutch authorities, Leijdekkers is believed to have been living in Sierra Leone for an extended period, where he reportedly has a relationship with the daughter of President Julius Maada Bio . The Netherlands faces significant legal obstacles in securing his extradition, as there is no extradition treaty between the two countries, and Leijdekkers may hold Sierra Leonean citizenship .

Political Fallout in Ghana

The NACOC arrests come amid growing political pressure over Ghana’s alleged role as a narcotics transit hub. Days before the arrests, the Minority in Parliament called for a full-scale independent parliamentary inquiry into what it described as Ghana’s “descent into a major narcotics transit hub under the Mahama-led NDC administration” .

In a statement dated September 13 and signed by Hon. Rev. John Ntim Fordjour, Ranking Member on the Defence and Interior Committee, the Minority claimed that high-profile narcotics seizures linked to Ghana under the current administration now exceed US$1 billion in under two years .

The Caucus cited a series of incidents, including the March 2025 interception of a truck at Pedu Junction in Cape Coast carrying over 3.3 tonnes of cocaine valued at more than US261 million concealed in a charcoal consignment traced to Ghana .

The Minority further raised concerns about the prosecution of local cases, alleging that in the Pedu Junction matter, only the driver, a housemaid, and a few peripheral suspects had been arraigned more than a year after the seizure, while the alleged financiers remained unidentified .

The Caucus is demanding that sector Ministers and heads of the Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Transport, NACOC, Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority, Ghana Immigration Service, and the Bureau of National Investigations be summoned before Parliament to give a full public account of the investigations .

Separately, Dr. Francis-Xavier Sosu, NDC Member of Parliament for Madina, also called for a thorough investigation into the Dunkirk seizure, warning that failure to do so would put Ghana’s “international reputation” at risk .

NACOC has not yet responded publicly to the Minority’s call for a parliamentary inquiry. The Commission’s statement on the arrests reiterated its commitment to international cooperation and the protection of legal rights for all persons under investigation .