The person convicted in Belgium for a money transfer of 700 thousand euros was caught in Loures

Portuguese Polícia Judiciária (PJ) captured a 56-year-old man sought by Belgian authorities in the Loures region.

It is stated that the person, who was sentenced to four years in prison for money laundering in Belgium, transferred a total of approximately 700 thousand euros from the company he managed to another company.

The arrest was made on Thursday morning, September 10, by PJ's Unidade de Informação Criminal unit.

The next process for the person will not be a retrial of the crime in Portugal, but the legal procedure of extradition to Belgium.

The event extends to 2022

The events in the file of the Belgian authorities took place in the period April–August 2022, in a city around Brussels.

According to the information provided by PJ, the 56-year-old person was working as a manager of a company at that time.

According to the findings of the Belgian authorities, two separate transfers were made from the company's bank accounts to another company.

The total value of the transfers was approximately 700 thousand euros.

It was stated that the transactions caused the same amount of financial damage to the company of which he was the manager.

He has a four-year prison sentence

There is an important legal distinction in this file.

The captured person was not only wanted as a "suspect" investigated by Belgium.

According to the information provided by the Portuguese authorities, he was wanted in Belgium for the purpose of executing a four-year prison sentence for money laundering.

Therefore, the process in Portugal is where the blame lies. It is not a criminal case that will decide the merits again.

The primary issue is whether the person will be handed over to Belgium.

Why is he appearing in Portuguese court?

The fact that the person sought by a European country is found in Portugal does not mean that the police can directly take him across the border and send him to another country.

The person caught will be brought before the Tribunal da Relação de Lisboa.

The court will evaluate the measure to be implemented while the surrender process continues and will carry out the procedure within the framework of European judicial cooperation rules.

This legal control is also part of the accelerated delivery system within the European Union.

How does the European Arrest Warrant work?

The main tool used among EU countries for serious crimes and the execution of final sentences is the Mandado de Detenção Europeu, that is, the European Arrest Warrant.

The system aims to establish direct cooperation between judicial authorities instead of classical and often longer political extradition procedures.

When a person wanted in a member state is found in another EU country, the courts of the country where he is captured control the legal conditions of the request.

Therefore, just because the person was caught in Loures does not mean that he started serving the four-year sentence in Belgium in Portugal.

What is the significance of the event for Portugal?

The incident is not a new 700 thousand euro fraud case that took place in Portugal.

The financial transactions at the core of the file will be processed in Belgium and in 2022. happened.

The Portuguese connection is that the person sought by the Belgian authorities was found in the Loures region and captured by PJ.

This distinction is also important in terms of the title: It should not be inferred that 700 thousand euros were stolen in Loures or transferred from a Portuguese company.

What happens now?

The next stage is the evaluation of the Lisboa Court of Appeal.

The court will evaluate the measures to be taken regarding the freedom of the person during the surrender procedure and the legal process of the Belgian authorities' request.

If the necessary conditions are met, the person can be handed over to the Belgian authorities for execution of the sentence.

Therefore, the operation in Loures is the Portuguese leg of the financial crime file that started in Belgium four years ago, not a new Portuguese criminal investigation.

Resources

Polícia Judiciária — Unidade de Informação Criminal — September 10, 2026 — Statement on the capture operation carried out in Loures

Renascença — Olímpia Mairos, 10 September 2026 — “Detido em Loures homem procurado na Bélgica por desviar 700 mil euros”