Seven French customs officers referred to court over drug trafficking allegations
Seven French customs officers, including two former senior officials, have been referred to the Paris Correctional Court on charges of drug trafficking and/or complicity, following operations that involved irregularities such as the resale of cocaine through an informant, according to sources close to the case.
The indictment, dated late December, notes that there is no evidence supporting personal enrichment among the officers. However, the case raises serious questions about the practices of the National Directorate for Customs Investigations (DNRED), particularly regarding the management and payment of informants, known as “advisors.”
The affair traces back to November 2011, following emails alerting authorities to suspicious practices by certain customs officials. Operations included authorized drug deliveries intended to trap traffickers. During two shipments from Colombia in 2009 and 2010, a total of roughly 50 kilograms of cocaine were involved, with some of it later sold to an informant to settle disputes with the source.
Other irregularities surfaced, such as the removal of 120 kilograms of seized cannabis in Gironde in 2009, temporarily handed to an informant for payment purposes. Authorities have emphasized that DNRED has since undertaken significant reforms to secure sensitive processes, including stricter protocols for handling informants.
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