Ex-Dutch International Promes arrested in Dubai

Former Ajax and Dutch international winger Quincy Promes, who was recently convicted of smuggling more than a tonne of cocaine, has been arrested in Dubai. This arrest comes two weeks after a court in the Netherlands sentenced him to six years in prison.

Dutch prosecutors confirmed the arrest on Friday, clarifying that it was related to an alleged offense committed in Dubai and not due to a Dutch request for extradition.

"We have verified the media reports about Promes' arrest," said Franklin Wattimena, a spokesperson for the public prosecutor's office. "We understand from our contact person there that Promes was arrested for a local offense and not for the Dutch case," Wattimena stated in an email to AFP.

However, Dutch public broadcaster NOS reported that Dutch prosecutors were in discussions with the UAE regarding Promes' detention. According to Russian media, Promes was arrested for leaving the scene of a traffic accident in Dubai.

Promes, who currently plays for Spartak Moscow, was reportedly apprehended at the airport as his club was departing after a training camp. Previous attempts to extradite him from Moscow had failed, and a warrant for his arrest was issued by judges at the Amsterdam District Court after he was sentenced on February 14.

The court found Promes guilty of smuggling 1,363 kilograms of cocaine from Brazil in 2020, with the assistance of an accomplice, through the Belgian port of Antwerp into the Netherlands. The drugs were concealed in bags of salt in containers on board a ship, which was partially intercepted by customs officials.

Promes had previously been sentenced to 18 months in prison and ordered to pay compensation for stabbing his cousin over a stolen necklace.

A former player for the Dutch national team, Promes has won 50 caps and scored seven goals. He was part of the Dutch side that was eliminated by the Czech Republic in the last 16 of the Euro 2020 championships, held in 2021 due to the Covid pandemic. Since then, he has not represented the Netherlands.

Promes joined Dutch club Ajax in Amsterdam in 2019, following a 15-million-euro transfer from Sevilla. In 2021, he moved to Moscow, where he has been playing for Spartak ever since, after a previous stint from 2014-2018, during which he was named Russia's Footballer of the Year.