The girlfriend of snooker ace Luca Brecel faces the prospect of a prison sentence after being hauled into court on drug dealing charges.
Laura Vanoverberghe, who started dating Brecel in 2023, was allegedly part of a drug gang – prior to when she started dating the snooker star – which sold cocaine and other illicit substances on the streets of her native Belgium. The 25-year-old was arrested in September last year and now could face a 37-month suspended prison sentence, while the leaders of the gang, who operated under the street name 'the C-team', are looking at five years behind bars.
An investigation was launched back in 2022 when one of the leaders, named in court as Wayan Z, was stopped by police for inappropriate driving. In the car, officers found cannabis and cocaine, as well as numerous weapons including brass knuckles and a Rambo knife, according to De Telegraaf.
Also in the car was Vanoverberghe, who was asleep on a mattress at the time of the stoppage. A subsequent probe into the group found that they distributed cocaine, cannabis, ecstasy, MDMA, mephedrone, speed and hashish on a large scale.
According to prosecutor Lode Vandaele, Ms Vanoverberghe was initially just a distributor for the gang, but began taking up more important positions in 2022.
"At first she was a driver for the gang, later she took on a more organizing role," he told the court. "A bank investigation showed that no less than 35,000 euros had been deposited into her account by customers."
The court also heard that several members of the group, including Vanoverberghe, ended up working in sales due to their heavy cocaine addiction.
"There was no great luxury in my client's home," lawyer Gregory Everaert, representing Wayan Z, claimed. "It was dirty and everyone slept on a chair or in an armchair. As long as they had cocaine."
Vanoverberghe, who currently lives with her famous boyfriend in Maasmechelen, eastern Belgium, has expressed a desire to be personally present for her trial, according to her counsel.
Brecel, 29, is one of snooker's very best players. He's a former world champion, having clinched the title at the Crucible in 2023, beating Mark Selby in the final. The Belgian Bullet admitted to spending the vast majority of his winnings from the tournament in order to keep himself financially motivated.
Vanoverberghe flew out to Sheffield to watch the final, and joined Brecel on the floor as he celebrated with the trophy. She later revealed the trip was her very first outside Belgium.