Radja Nainggolan appeared in Brussels criminal court on Thursday as his trial over alleged money laundering continued, with the Belgian Public Prosecutor's Office seeking an effective two-year prison sentence. The case centres on authorities' claim that €105,500 in cash was delivered to him and later transferred in seven tranches to Nasr-Eddine Sekkaki's mother's bank account. Nainggolan's lawyers are pushing for acquittal.

Nainggolan's denial in court

Nainggolan told the judge, "There is nothing wrong with that, is there? I needed money. Who, what, how, I don't think about it." The line was central to his denial, and it fits the defence's broader stance that this is a badly misread episode rather than a criminal scheme.

Omar Souidi, his lawyer, described the case as a "surreal nightmare" and said Nainggolan had to spend two days in a cold cell after the arrest. The defence also argued that the money had a legal origin, while Frédéric Thiebaut, lawyer for Sekkaki, said bank statements show the cash was withdrawn and then handed over to Nainggolan, adding that the legal origin was "irrevocably proven".

The dispute is less about the existence of the money than what happened to it once it moved. Prosecutors say the trail points to laundering. The defence says the funds were legitimately borrowed and the story has been blown out of proportion.

The cash trail prosecutors are targeting

The key figure is €105,500, split across seven cash transfers after the alleged handover. That is the part prosecutors are leaning on as they ask for an effective two-year sentence.

The defence is trying to keep the focus on intent and origin, not the mechanics of the transfer. Nainggolan's side says the money was needed and was not criminally sourced, while the prosecution is treating the transfers themselves as evidence of laundering. The court in Brussels now has to weigh those versions against each other.

The hearing is continuing in Brussels criminal court, and the sentence request leaves Nainggolan facing a serious threat if the prosecution persuades the judge.

Written by Sam Whitfield with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 1 outlet. How we work →