Drug seizure on a commercial vessel off the port of Sète
On May 13, a joint operation against drug trafficking at sea, led by the Service garde-côte des douanes (SGCD) and the groupement de…
Indeed, the préfet maritime de la Méditerranée coordinates the activity of all administrations contributing to State action at sea. The fight against illicit trafficking is one of the government's priorities, in which the competent services are fully invested. In this framework, a targeted operation to combat drug trafficking in the Mediterranean Sea was conducted on May 13 by the SGCD de Méditerranée and the groupement de Gendarmerie maritime de Méditerranée. This joint NARCOPS operation deployed numerous nautical and subaquatic resources, as well as several investigative services. Thus, the Douane, with the coast guard brigades of Sète (patrol boat DF26) and Marseille and the brigade de surveillance extérieure de Sète, and the Gendarmerie maritime, with the brigade of Sète and the peloton de sûreté maritime et portuaire de Port-de-Bouc, were mobilized for this operation.
58 KILOS OF DRUGS
On May 13, while a bulk carrier coming from Paranagua in Brazil and bound for Sète was targeted by the operational centers of the Douane and the Gendarmerie maritime, it was the subject of a coordinated intervention upon its arrival in the approaches to Sète. In the early evening, while some of the agents were inspecting the inside of the vessel, an under-hull inspection was conducted by divers. It was the latter who identified a first rectangular bundle hidden in the rudder trunk, a submerged part of the vessel. Unable to extract it from the outside, the agents then opened the space from inside the vessel and discovered two bundles containing 50 blocks of cocaine for a total of 58 kg. While the vessel's master was notified of his customs detention, the drugs were seized by the Douane for destruction. At the end of the customs detention, the vessel's master was handed over to the office anti-stupéfiants (OFAST) of Montpellier, then released. Following this seizure, the juridiction interrégionale spécialisée de Marseille opened a preliminary investigation for import of narcotics in an organized gang, drug trafficking, and conspiracy to commit an organized gang crime. •