The president of Moroccan football club Wydad AC, Said Naciri, was arrested on Friday as part of an investigation into drug trafficking, one of his lawyers said.

Naciri, 54, was detained on the orders of a judge in Casablanca on several charges including "forgery of official documents, possession and distribution of drugs, and the use of counterfeit cheques", the lawyer told AFP, asking not to be identified.

Media reports in the North African country said that, in addition, the judge had charged Naciri, who is a member of the Authenticity and Modernity (PAM) political party, with "money laundering".

The investigation has involved 25 defendants, 21 of whom are under arrest, including Abdenbi Bioui, the head of the regional council of Oujda province in the east and also a member of PAM, the lawyer said.

Naciri is set to appear before an investigating judge for further questioning on January 25.

The investigation was opened after a Malian man, convicted in Morocco of drug trafficking, accused Naciri of criminal activity, Naciri's lawyer said.

Last year, an article in Jeune Afrique magazine said the Malian national was El Hadj Ahmed Ben Brahim, a drug lord who was sentenced in 2019 to 10 years in prison in an "international drug-trafficking" case.

Wydad AC is historically the most successful club in Moroccan football, having won a record number of domestic titles as well as three continental CAF Champions League titles, the most recent of which came in 2022.