Abrini is a Belgian national of Moroccan descent and was a childhood friend of both Salah Abdeslam and his brother Brahim. He was 31 at the time of his arrest.[3] Abrini grew up in Brussels, where he worked in a bakery, earning the nickname "Brioche", before becoming involved in petty crime and then with radical Islamists living in the Brussels district of Molenbeek.[4] His brother was killed in Syria fighting for the Islamic State.[5] Abrini is also believed to have fought in Syria.[6]