2023-04-16 12:02:00
A Belgian-Algerian has been imprisoned for 45 days in Algeria. The Algerian police accuse him of having been in possession of counterfeit banknotes. According to his companion, the dinars were nevertheless bought in good faith in a Brussels exchange office.
Virginie shows us one of the last photos taken together during the holidays to discover Algeria. “The day before departure, that’s when everything changed“, she confides.
A trivial visit to the bank changed everything. Counterfeit notes are spotted: the equivalent of 50 euros. “In the car, he contacts me saying: “The tickets we have are fake”. I didn’t understand right away, because I fell from a height. We went to join him, and that’s where the rest followed with the police“, explains Virginia.
But how long does it take to scan banknotes?
Mohammad is incarcerated. Virginie and their son then return to Belgium without him. It is 1,000 dinar notes that pose a problem. The family says they received them at an exchange office in Brussels. These tickets”don’t come from us, they came out of a machine in this exchange office. In the back, in a cabin, they have a small machine with a dial that specifies the amount coming out. These tickets came out of there. 1,000 dinars, all white, brand new“, assures Virginia.
She wonders how long the legal process will take. “Now, as each ticket is unique and traceable, it is up to the Algerian investigation to do its job. To investigators. And we are waiting for news. But how long does it take to scan banknotes? How long will the investigation last? If the investigation lasts six months, if the analysis lasts six months, will he remain six months in prison?“, worries our witness.
Because he has Belgian nationality and lives in Belgium, we keep him in preventive detention
The exchange slips are in the hands of the police. For the Belgian family lawyer, the detention is not justified. “Because he has Belgian nationality and lives in Belgium, he is kept in preventive detention. It’s Kafkaesque. It is the snake that kills its tail. We are in the most complete absurdity. There really must now be steps taken by the Belgian authorities to defend a person who was born in Belgium, who has a child in Belgium, who has a partner in Belgium. I think it is the role of the Minister of Foreign Affairs to do something, to move“, reacts Laurent Kennes.
The reaction of Foreign Affairs
For its part, the Belgian Foreign Affairs claim to follow the file. “FPS (Federal Public Service) Foreign Affairs therefore provides consular assistance to Mr. Hamani when he is a Belgian national. The fact that he is bipatrid and that he is in the country of his other nationality in no way influences our intervention but might influence the Algerian response”indicates in writing the administration.
“He is a Belgian citizen who is waiting to be defended and to be released as an innocent citizen.“, underlines Virginia.
Conditional release is hoped for so that Mohamed can at least be with family in Algeria. Virginie and their son have been waiting for his return for 45 days.
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