Five people were arrested and 134 kg of cocaine and a fine of 77,000 euros were seized as part of a European investigation led by the Grasse judicial court which has just been concluded.
This Monday, September 2, the Spanish police arrested two thirty-somethings as part of a European investigation started six months earlier thanks to the flair of customs officers in Nice.
Last February, the Nice customs service intercepted a vehicle carrying 77 kg of cocaine. The public prosecutor’s office of the Grasse judicial court then called upon the Alpes-Maritimes judicial police to take the owners of the car, a couple living in Alicante, Spain, into custody.
The 41-year-old man and his 37-year-old partner were finally charged with importing and trafficking drugs and placed in pre-trial detention.
Albanian criminal network identified
From there, investigators from the narcotics squad of the organised and specialised crime division (the DCOS which replaced the PJ) were tasked with continuing the investigations.
Working on a rogatory commission from an investigating judge at the Grasse judicial court, they identified several vehicles belonging to an Albanian criminal network. The particularity of these cars: regular journeys between Spain, Benelux, France and Italy to deliver large quantities of cocaine.
Investigators were thus able to identify a base in Spain from which the main leaders of the network operated.
A first round of raids
In May 2024, investigators from Nice, those from the SIPJ in Perpignan and the Spanish authorities began a European cooperation which proved fruitful in mid-August.
On August 15, at around 2 a.m., investigators assisted by the BRI in Perpignan intercepted two vehicles on French territory after they had crossed the Spanish border.
Two men aged 23 and 48 and a 46-year-old woman, all from Albania, were arrested.
Placement in pretrial detention
The police then discovered a cache of 57.6 kg of cocaine in a car. One of the suspects explained that he was carrying out the transport in exchange for paying off a debt of 30,000 euros to an Albanian trafficker.
The three suspects were charged with importing and trafficking narcotics. They were placed in custody.
Operations in Spain
Spanish police conducted operations across the border. They searched a warehouse in the Valencia region. According to investigators, this was the place where the drugs were loaded. The police found a vehicle used on previous trips but empty. They still seized 19,500 euros in cash.
Finally, on Monday, September 2, Spanish police arrested two thirty-somethings living in Spain who were the subject of a European arrest warrant. A third person is being sought.
