Ferrara trial opens with defense challenging robbery charges
Ferrara trial begins in Brussels with defense denying armed robbery charges and claiming no weapons found.
Event / Security
Ferrara Organized Crime Trial Brussels
Trial of French organized crime figure Antonio Ferrara and nine co-defendants in Brussels courts for a planned armed robbery in Germany that was disrupted by Belgian and French police on February 27, 2025. The trial began April 20, 2025 and is scheduled through April 29, 2025.
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2026-08-18 to 2026-11-15 · UTC publication dates
Coverage begins 20 Apr, 11:07 UTC
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What happened
Antonio Ferrara has extensive criminal history including prison escapes
Antonio Ferrara, born in October 1973 in southern Italy and residing in the Paris region with his family, earned the nickname 'king of the escape' following his dramatic escape from Fresnes prison near Paris in 2003. He has been convicted in France for robberies, attempted murder, and two prison escapes. His last major conviction in Paris in October 2010 resulted in a 12-year sentence (reduced on appeal) for his Fresnes escape. He was released from prison in July 2022 after serving nineteen years.
Antonio Ferrara arrested in connection with planned armed robbery
Antonio Ferrara, age 52, was arrested on February 27, 2025 during the police operation in Eupen, Belgium. He is considered by prosecutors to be one of the masterminds of the planned armed robbery targeting the bank vault in Bochum, Germany. Ferrara had been the subject of French investigations into organized crime since autumn 2024.
Trial of Antonio Ferrara begins in Brussels court
Antonio Ferrara went to trial on April 20, 2025 in the correctional tribunal of Brussels, Belgium, charged with conspiracy to commit armed robbery and related offenses. The trial is scheduled through April 29, 2025, with judgment to be deliberated after. He faces up to ten years imprisonment in Belgium for the planned attack.
Belgian police officer injured during apprehension of fleeing suspect
During the police operation in Eupen on February 27, 2025, a special units officer of the Belgian federal police was injured when suspect Yacine Bentouati deliberately drove a vehicle at police cars while attempting to escape. Bentouati now faces attempted murder charges for this action.
Ten suspects charged in connection with planned armed robbery
Antonio Ferrara and nine co-defendants were charged in the planned armed robbery case. The co-defendants include Ferrara's brother Massimiliano Ferrara, Kader Doumbia from the Paris region, Abderahim Bekhti (a Belgian-Moroccan known to French justice), and Yacine Bentouati (an Algerian) among others. Charges include possession of explosives, prohibited weapons, aggravated theft, attempted robbery with violence, participation in criminal organization, and in one case, attempted murder.
Police operation in Eupen, Belgium disrupts planned armed bank robbery in Germany
On February 27, 2025 at dawn, Belgian and French police conducted an operation in Eupen, Belgium, near the German border, disrupting a planned armed robbery targeting a bank vault facility in Bochum, Germany. The criminals had rented a residence in Eupen and were on the verge of executing the attack when the operation was launched.
Ferrara's defense contests charges, claims no weapons found
Antonio Ferrara's defense attorney, Olivier Martins, contested the charges against him, arguing that no weapons were found in the vehicle where Ferrara was arrested and that telephone records from the investigation failed to establish his connection to the gang that was preparing to execute the robbery in Germany.
Antonio Ferrara released on bail pending trial
Antonio Ferrara was released from provisional detention in Belgium in November 2025 on conditional release under judicial control, following the payment of a 30,000 euro bail. He appeared for trial in April 2026 in a free status. Several other defendants were also released on conditions or placed under electronic bracelet monitoring.
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Police Operation in Belgium Leads to Arrest in Robbery Investigation
Belgian police arrested Ferrara, disrupting a planned armed robbery; one officer injured during the operation.