If the tough tobacco sellers remain the prerogative of major cities, the traffic in cigarettes does not spare the rural departments like the Dordogne. This was noted by the Bergerac court on Tuesday, May 6, where a 34 -year -old Sarladais was tried for fraudulent tobacco detention for sale.
The man was arrested in Sarlat, at the end of November 2024; The gendarmes had used a pseudonym on Snapchat to order three cartridges. This meeting, fixed in the Carrefour car park in Sarlat, had not succeeded, the thirty-something feeling that these customers were not quite like the others. During the search carried out then at his home, 44 Marlboro cartridges were entered as well as 11,800 euros in cash.
“Profitable” trafficking
“I bought a cardboard of 50 cartridges via social networks in Périgueux, ten days earlier,” explains the accused. I sold the cartridge at 60 euros and the package at 10. I had just opened my grocery store, I was afraid of not being able to assume the charges of my business. As with narcotic drugs, the uberization of cigarette traffic has exploded from the covid. “The announcements were multiplied by three or even four on the networks,” notes Daniel Bruquel who fights against traffic at Philip Morris France, civil party in the trial. Cities or countryside no territory is spared. »»
“I sold the cartridge at 60 euros and the package at 10”
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Especially since traffic would be particularly “profitable”. In France, it would represent, according to figures from Daniel Bruquel, 2.5 billion euros. “Regarding tobacco traffic, we are overwhelmed,” confirmed the customs representative at the hearing. Asked about the money found at home, the defendant ensures that only a few hundred euros come from the sale. “I had 10,000 euros in savings,” explains the 30 -year -old who has 10 mentions in the locker for drug trafficking or road crimes.
See you on May 15
Civil party, the tobacconists’ federation underlined the “shortfall” for professionals but also moral damage. “A tobacconist earns between 1,200 and 1,500 euros per month and affects 10 cents on a package,” illustrated the lawyer who claimed 538 euros in material damage and 2,000 euros for the moral damage.
But for the defense, it is not a large -scale traffic. “We are told about public health but in any case, smoking kills,” said Raygade highlighting “the enameled life of painful events” of his client. The magistrates decided to follow the requisitions of the prosecution by condemning the Sarladais to nine months in prison with the possibility of development. In addition, he will have to pay 7,715 euros fine, 4,798 euros in rights and taxes, 2,000 euros in tax fine and 5,000 euros in penalty. The man will also owe 1,038 euros to the federation of tobacconists and 900 euros to Philip Morris France.
The civil parties will meet on Thursday, May 15 in Bergerac: a couple will have to answer for detention and sale of tobacco in organized gang and money laundering between January 2022 and April 2025. It is estimated that they were selling “at least 200 cartridges per week”, the customs fine was calculated at 2 million euros.
