Dutch police offer record €2m reward in hunt for drug lord

Dutch authorities have offered a record award of €2m (£1.7m/$2.24m) for information leading to the arrest of Jos Leijdekkers, one of Europe's most-wanted men.

The 35-year-old, who is also known as Bolle Jos (Chubby Jos), was previously accused of being "one of the key players in international cocaine trafficking" by Dutch police.

Commenting on the decision to increase the reward ten-fold, Dutch justice minister David van Weel said it was "necessary given the threat that Leijdekkers poses to national security, our democratic rule of law, and the international legal order".

Dutch prosecutors said capturing Leijdekkers was their "highest priority" and any information shared would be kept secret.

He is listed by Europol, the EU's law enforcement agency, as among their most-wanted fugitives.

In January 2025, Dutch police said he was believed to be living in Sierra Leone and going by the name Omar Sherrif.

Images apparently showing Leijdekkers in the company of President Julius Maada Bio and other officials have previously emerged.

Dutch prosecutors have demanded his extradition but Sierra Leone has refused to cooperate, prompting the EU to cut some aid to the country.

West Africa is a major transit point for cocaine trafficking from Latin America.

In 2024, a court in Rotterdam sentenced Leijdekkers in absentia to 24 years in prison after finding him guilty of smuggling ⁠more than seven metric tons of cocaine.

Several other police investigations in the Netherlands are ongoing.

Leijdekkers has also been sentenced to 79 years in prison in Belgium.

Dutch authorities estimate he has made tens of millions of euros from ⁠cocaine smuggling, and accuse him of money laundering and involvement in the use of extreme violence.