Belgian police have arrested Shah C., accused of carrying out a contract killing in Fuengirola, Málaga, when he was 17. His detention came after his release from a Spanish juvenile center, where the maximum nine-month period for pretrial detention had expired. He then left Spain and disappeared. On June 25, 2026, Belgian authorities arrested him in Laarne, near Ghent, after a Spanish National Police inspector recognized him during a family visit and alerted colleagues. They detained him about 48 hours later in an operation involving Belgian and Dutch police.
Shah C., now 19, is suspected of traveling to the Costa del Sol in December 2024 to kill a Dutch national. Investigators say several alleged accomplices provided logistical support. Some coordinated his arrival, while women transported the Tokarev rifle from Paris to Málaga. On the night of December 7, he allegedly waited outside a cannabis club in Fuengirola and fired 18 shots at the victim. He then discarded the weapon under a car and fled by bicycle before returning to Belgium. A Policía Nacional inspector called the case unprecedented in his experience, saying he had “never encountered a minor acting as a hitman.”
Investigators believe the killing may have stemmed from a gang dispute. They have also considered whether the victim was mistaken for someone else. The National Police’s Udyco Group II in Málaga made several arrests, including a collaborator in Torremolinos and women suspected of transporting the weapon. Another suspect died in a police shooting in Amsterdam. In June 2025, Shah C. was arrested in Belgium and transferred to Spain to face proceedings. He spent approximately eight to nine months in juvenile detention. When the applicable limit expired, he was released and left the country.
Spanish police criticized the release, while judicial reporting said Shah C. had been warned not to leave Spain. Information from Marca, he disappeared after crossing the border. The Netherlands later issued a European Arrest Warrant. The Spanish inspector who recognized Shah C. contacted colleagues, who coordinated with Belgian and Dutch authorities. That cooperation led to his arrest in Belgium. The warrant came from the Netherlands, not Spain, and Dutch authorities are expected to handle the proceedings alongside other Dutch defendants.
Shah C. was arrested in Laarne, near Ghent, in an operation involving Belgian federal police and local authorities. He is expected to be transferred to the Netherlands, where other suspects are also due to face proceedings. The investigation spans Spain and the Netherlands, and the firearm was moved from Paris to Málaga. Investigators believe the victim, Jasin Ajar, may not have been the intended target. Ajar, 25, had recently moved to Málaga for a sabbatical year and was working at the cannabis club. Investigators suspect Shah C. may have mistaken him for someone else there.
The case has renewed debate about juvenile detention and international cooperation in serious crime investigations. Spanish authorities released Shah C. after the maximum period of juvenile pretrial detention had expired, and he later left Spain despite the warning not to do so. His subsequent arrest followed coordination between Spanish and Belgian police, with Dutch authorities involved, and the Dutch European Arrest Warrant. The case also shows the cross-border reach of the alleged operation, involving people suspected of arranging travel and moving a firearm between countries.
The situation has also drawn comparisons with other high-profile issues involving minors and cross-border policy, including pressure on Spanish regions over unaccompanied migrant minors. For example, the government’s efforts to redistribute unaccompanied minors from Ceuta have highlighted the challenges of managing youth-related policy across borders.
Spain’s juvenile justice system aims to balance rehabilitation with public safety. European Arrest Warrants allow judicial authorities in one EU member state to seek a person’s arrest and surrender in another. In Shah C.’s case, the Dutch warrant and coordination among national police forces were basic to locating and arresting him after he left Spain. His case is expected to proceed in the Netherlands.
