A Dutch court has sentenced Netherlands international Quincy Promes to six years imprisonment for involvement in a drug smuggling ring.

According to Voetbal International, prosecutors were asking for a nine-year sentence for the former Ajax star, absent throughout the trial as he remained in Russia, where he played for Spartak Moscow.

But the judge decided to hand him a six-year jail term.

The incident reportedly took place in January of 2020 while Mr Promes was still playing for Ajax — he had allegedly tried to smuggle 1350kg of cocaine through the Antwerp port in Belgium. 

However, the 32-year-old has always maintained his innocence. It is not the first time that the player has landed himself in the middle of legal trouble, as he was given a one-and-a-half term for stabbing his cousin at a party.

It is unclear whether the former Sevilla man will return to his home country, where he played more than 50 times for the Orange, to serve his prison sentence or remain in Russia, which has no extradition treaty with the Netherlands.