Drug-trafficking is turning Belgium into a narco-state and the rule of law is under threat, an Antwerp judge wrote in an anonymous letter published Monday asking the federal government for urgent help.

“What is happening today in our district and beyond is no longer a classic crime issue. We are facing an organized threat that undermines our institutions,” the investigating judge wrote in the missive published on the official website of the Belgian court system.

“Extensive mafia-like structures have taken root, becoming a parallel power that challenges not only the police but also the judiciary. The consequences are serious: are we evolving into a narco-state? No way, you think? Exaggerated? According to our drug commissioner, this evolution is already underway. My colleagues and I share that concern,” the judge added.

The massive Port of Antwerp acts as a gateway for illegal narcotics to enter Belgium — and Europe more widely. Brussels, the country’s capital, has been plagued by a spate of drug-related shootings, with more than 60 incidents this year alone, 20 of them occurring just this summer.

In response to the bloodbath, Belgium’s Interior Minister Bernard Quintin said he wants to deploy soldiers on the streets of Brussels. Earlier this year, the Belgian government approved a merger of Brussels’ six police zones into a single unit, set to take effect in early 2027, to tackle the scourge of violence.

In the anonymous letter, the judge goes on to note that a narco-state is characterized by an illegal economy, corruption and violence — conditions that Belgium fulfills, in the judge’s opinion. The judge notes that money-laundering networks drive up real-estate costs, the corruption penetrates state institutions and kidnappings can be ordered on Snapchat.

“This bribery seeps into our institutions. The cases I have led in recent years — and I am just one of 17 investigative judges in Antwerp — have resulted in arrests of employees in key port positions, customs officers, police officers, municipal clerks, and, regrettably, even justice system staff, both inside prisons and right here in this building,” the judge’s letter reads.

“A home attack with a bomb or weapons of war, a home invasion, or a kidnapping are all easily ordered online. You don’t even need to go to the dark web; a Snapchat account is all it takes,” the judge added.