An Africa-born French customs official alleged to have recently bought a huge home in his native Senegal is one of a dozen arrested as part of a cocaine trafficking bust by police.
The customs officer, who worked at Paris’ Charles-de-Gaulle airport, was arrested along with eleven others this week as part of a large police operation into a cocaine network that trafficked around 100 to 130 pounds of cocaine per week.
The customs officer, a 35-year-old named Bocar, is believed to have been given a sum of 50,000 euros to look the other way as cocaine was brought into France from South America, Actu17 reports.
The 35-year-old, previously a soldier, is said to originally come from the African nation of Senegal, and believed to have recently purchased a large home in his native country.
The 35-year-old was involved in several drug busts in the past, including finding cocaine stashed in coconuts.
As a result of the police operation, which involved a number of police forces and other investigative agencies, two weapons and about 130 pounds of cocaine were seized, worth around four million euros.
Drug trafficking and the gangs surrounding it are a major security issue across France. According to a report released earlier this year, drug trafficking increased by 3.6 per cent in 2022, while drug consumption increased by 12.9 per cent.
Violence between criminals linked to drug trafficking is also a major issue, with a 2022 report claiming that in the first six months of last year the number of murders and attempted murders between criminals increased by 25 per cent compared to the same period in 2021.
A 2021 report also revealed that nearly all of the major drug bosses in France come from migration backgrounds, including the number one most dangerous drug boss, Moufide Bouchibi, who was born in the French department of Essone but is linked to Moroccan drug producers.
Follow Chris Tomlinson on Twitter at @TomlinsonCJ or email at ctomlinson(at)breitbart.com.
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.