Radja Nainggolan arrested in cocaine trafficking probe
Former Belgium international and AS Roma, Cagliari and Royal Antwerp midfielder Radja Nainggolan has been arrested as part of an investigation into cocaine trafficking into Europe from South America, the Brussels Public Prosecutor's Office have said.
Brussels federal police carried out 30 searches on Monday morning, mainly in the province of Antwerp and in and around Brussels as part of the investigation. Brussels' public prosecutor's office confirmed that Nainggolan was 'deprived of his liberty in connection with this case.'
After several months without a club, Nainggolan came out of retirement to play second-tier Belgian side Lokeren-Temse. He celebrated his debut with a goal straight from a corner kick last weekend.
His new team said in a statement that they only found out about his arrest from media reports.
'The club respects the presumption of innocence and therefore cannot comment further. We can only confirm that the player was absent from training this morning. The club will continue to focus on tomorrow's crucial league match against KAS Eupen. Radja Nainggolan is not eligible to play in that match anyway.'
The 36-year-old Nainggolan has made 30 appearances for Belgium but has not played for his country since March 2018.
Known for his fiery character, the central midfielder spent most of his career in Italy. Nainggolan had several disciplinary issues throughout his career. When he played for Roma in 2018, he was fined and dropped from the squad after a series of apparently drunken postings live on Instagram on New Year's Eve.
When he played for Royal Antwerp in 2022, he was suspended after he was pictured smoking an electronic cigarette on the bench. The Belgian club at the time also mentioned how his behavior could negatively affect the squad.
GBeNeFN | Max Bradfield
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
27 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Rudi Garcia labels Belgium's World Cup qualifier with Wales a must win game
Belgium and Wales will face each other on Monday night in what Rudi Garcia has labelled a must win game for the Red Devils. Belgium started their World Cup qualification campaign with a disappointing 1-1 draw against North Macedonia. Their Welsh opponents are currently top of Group J, although they have played three games. Craig Bellamy's side have won two and drawn one of their matches so far. As reported by HLN, Garcia said to the media pre match 'Wales are a close competitor for a place in the World Cup – so we have to win, especially in a home game'. The Red Devils are in a pretty poor run of form. the side have only won one of their previous eight games, with the draw against North Macedonia being one of the two matches they have not lost. Belgium have not lost to Wales since the famous European Championship Quarter Final in which Hal Robson-Kanu's fantastic goal knocked heavy favourites Belgium out. Advertisement Defeat to Wales on Monday will certainly cause concern for Belgian fans and players, given that winning the group is the only way to guarantee a spot in the 2026 World Cup. GBeNeFN | Ben Jackson
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
DJ Lagway Reacts to Florida's Latest Recruiting Win
DJ Lagway Reacts to Florida's Latest Recruiting Win originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The Florida Gators recently received a commitment from G'Nivre Carr, a 6-foot-5, 315 pound interior offensive lineman, beating out SEC foes n Tennessee, Georgia, and Alabama. Advertisement Florida has their quarterback in DJ Lagway, and now has an incredible talent in the 2026 recruiting class, joining two other commits in quarterback Will Griffin and defensive lineman Jamir Perez. After receiving the No. 10 ranked recruiting class for 2025, the 2026 class is slowly getting started, with their rank sitting at No. 51 currently. Lagway posted the announcement of Carr's commitment on Instagram, and showcased his excitement for the Gators securing a big offensive lineman to protect him in 2026. Florida Gators quarterback DJ Lagway (2).Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images "Yessir!!" exclaimed Lagway, as he cannot wait to have Carr potentially protecting him in 2026, as he will likely be playing his last collegiate season before heading to the NFL. DJ Lagway's Instagram Story.@djlagway/Instagram Lagway's excitement surrounds not just him but all of Florida fans, who are thrilled with how the recruiting has been under head coach Billy Napier. Advertisement The possibility of another top 10 class in 2026 , which would mark their third straight, is exciting on its own, and having a quarterback like Lagway leading the charge makes it that much better. The Gators will enter the first season with Lagway as the full-time starting quarterback, as he relieved Graham Mertz when he went down with injury midseason. As for Carr, one more year will help him grow his game before he jumps to the collegiate level, and with three seniors on the starting offensive line this year in Damieon George Jr., Jake Slaughter, and Austin Barber, Carr will have a chance to immediately make an impact in 2026. Related: DJ Lagway Expected to be Throwing to Elite WR in 2025 Related: Jac Caglianone Given Huge Comparison to Ohtani, Judge This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 2, 2025, where it first appeared.
Fox Sports
6 hours ago
- Fox Sports
Denny Hamlin wins Michigan, taunts crowd while awaiting third child
BROOKLYN, Mich. — Denny Hamlin could feel nerves during the race Sunday at Michigan International Speedway. His fiancée, Jordan Fish, was six days past due with their third child and Hamlin and his team had decided if they got past Lap 50 of the 200-lap race, he wouldn't be told if she went into labor. Things worked out for Hamlin. He won at Michigan and 90 minutes after the race, was still at the track doing media. He talked about why he needs to be at the birth, baby names … and fierce taunts of the crowd in Michigan. That's Hamlin, living amid chaos and then creating even more for himself. "I don't want to be so ho-hum with winning that it's boring because then I lose my drive," Hamlin said. Hamlin, who has a group of friends who are Ohio State fans, gave the "O" sign to the Michigan crowd and resurrected his line that he told his father he wouldn't use anymore as he crowed to the crowd: "I beat your favorite driver." The boos reigned and Hamlin chuckled. "I do thrive on it just simply because you feel like you've got 60,000 people that are rooting against you," Hamlin said. "When you have that, it just feels really, really good and gratifying to prove them wrong. "I love that feeling." Hamlin had spent Saturday night in Michigan as Fish had not had any labor symptoms. Fish posted an Instagram story late in the race that she was at home. "I felt decent enough about it," Hamlin said. "We had to set some sort of cutoff of whether I was going to finish or not. "So I was very nervous last night and then this morning to getting the call because I knew I had a race-winning car after yesterday." Hamlin is known to run well, even with outside distractions. And he has the additional drama of the race team he owns (but doesn't drive for) 23XI Racing embroiled in a lawsuit against NASCAR. Earlier in the week, the team was dealt a blow in the U.S Court of Appeals and faces the prospect of the 23XI Racing cars not being chartered in a few weeks. It seems that he has been able to focus when he's at the track since that lawsuit was filed last October. The worries about missing the birth of his child, though, seemed to weigh on him more. With JGR simulator driver Ryan Truex at the track, in case he needed to leave, Hamlin knew the team was prepared for him to leave if Fish went into labor. He knew he had a strong car and had a good feeling about the race. Granted, Hamlin didn't have the fastest car. Chris Buescher probably did, but his car wiggled as he tried to run down the leaders late in the race. This cost him valuable momentum and he ended up coming across the line a second after Hamlin. \ William Byron had a strong car, but like many others, he had to save gas near the end, relinquishing the lead with less than four laps to go and then running out with a little over a lap remaining. Hamlin's team made sure he had enough fuel on the final stop to be on the attack at the end. And he executed flawlessly to the finish. And his wife was still at home, posting on Instagram near the end of the race. "I was a little nervous just because we put the Lap 50 cutoff," Hamlin said. "If it happens before Lap 50, I just go ahead and get out, just because of the time. "If it was after, I thought that by the time she gets her s--- together and gets to the hospital, all that stuff? You just never how it all turns out. But I think I can make it, as long as I had a three-hour window." It marked the third win of the year for Hamlin and his 57th career victory in his 701st start. Now it's on to Mexico City, and Hamlin indicated he would be willing to stay home if Fish has not given birth by the weekend. Obviously, it is a much longer flight from there than it would have been from Michigan to his North Carolina home. NASCAR would grant Hamlin a waiver to miss a race and consider it for medical reasons, meaning he would still make the playoffs and get to keep playoff points earned during the season. "It's the bigger picture. You never know when you'll ever have another one," Hamlin said about wanting to be home for the birth of the child. "You may not. I've been really supportive of her, the way that she wants to have this play out, which is as natural as possible. "Everyone asks, 'Why don't you just schedule, schedule, schedule?' I don't know. You've just got to let her decide in these situations. If it causes me to miss a race, it's one of 701 races that I missed and it's just not that big of a deal." His team owner, Heather Gibbs, when asked earlier about whether she was nervous for Hamlin, quipped: "It's funny, because I have four [children]. They [husbands] don't really do anything. When he gets home, he'll be home. It was good." Hamlin's response: "Well, that is true. I've been in the room before, and she needs something really hard to grab onto, and my hand is perfect for it. I'm definitely going to be there this week — hopefully — to hold her hand." The same could have been said for the way Hamlin grabbed the lead just when he needed to and held on for the victory. "He kind of thrives in chaos, right?" Heather Gibbs said. "It was true, we wanted to get him in the car. ... He's as cool as they come, that's for sure." Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, and follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily! recommended Get more from NASCAR Cup Series Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more
