SkyECC News from Belgium

It has nearly been four years since the investigative authorities busted the OVH centre in Roubaix and seized the SkyECC servers. Still little is known about the exact way this was done. What is known for sure that three countries were involved, via a so-called ‘Joint Investigation Team’: France, the Netherlands and Belgium.

Although being almost four years further, the prosecution against the company SkyECC or affiliated individuals, is still in the investigative phase in France. In the Netherlands it looks like there is no prosecution against the company SkyECC (or whatsoever) pending at all, nor has the intention to it been made publicly known.

What probably is known best, is what has happened in Belgium. In Belgium, the most direct effect in the judicial system was visible in the spring of 2021. A relatively big group of people was arrested because of the suspicion of being a (re)seller of SkyECC-phones. But also in Belgium, all judicial doors were kept closed and most of the documents from the case file remained withheld for all defendants.

It was in 2024 when the company SkyECC asked for the disclosure of the case file as well that something interesting happened. The investigative judge refused the disclosure and the requesting party asked for the removal of this judge due to a lack of impartiality. That request was dismissed by the Court of Appeal of Antwerp, but is now overruled by the Belgian Supreme Court and this request has to be dealt with again.

You can find the decision here.

What the outcome of it will be, is uncertain. However, it shows that the knocking on the judicial is becoming heavier and our team will keep on knocking on it as well!