In Cavaillon, two suspects imprisoned for the fire of four police vehicles

Two men aged 19 and 24 were indicted and imprisoned on Sunday for the fire of four police vehicles in Cavaillon (Vaucluse), where an anti-drug operation was underway, the Avignon prosecutor announced on Monday October 14 .

The two suspects, from the Paris region, were arrested on October 9, the same day of the fire, and the investigation ” made it possible to make links between the arson and several arrests for drug trafficking carried out between 1^is and October 9 in the same town of Cavaillonspecified the Avignon public prosecutor, Florence Galtier, in a press release.

On the night of October 8 to 9, three screen-printed police cars and an unmarked vehicle, parked in front of the Cavaillon police station, were completely destroyed by the fire which caused no injuries but significantly damaged the facades. from the police station and a neighboring real estate agency.

According to a representative of the Alliance police union, three police officers, present in the police station at the time of the fire, had been “terrorized”. An investigation was immediately opened for destruction of property by dangerous means, by an organized gang, to the detriment of a holder of public authority. These are criminal acts punishable by twenty years in prison and/or a fine of 150,000 euros, recalled Monday M^me Galtier.

According to a source close to the case, the two suspects were known to the police and had already been arrested in September as part of another investigation for “home invasion and possession of drugs”. According to this same source, “clothing with traces of hydrocarbon” were found during a search, which made it possible to make a possible link with the burning of the police cars. Laboratory analyzes have “confirmed these elements”according to the source, which specifies that the two men denied the facts during their hearing.

“Clean space” operation

This fire, in the middle of the “clearance” operation targeting a local drug sales outlet, sparked strong reactions. The interdepartmental director of the national police, Emmanuel Desjars de Keranrouë, estimated that the« attack “ probably fell under “retaliation for police action” against drug trafficking in this town of just over 25,000 inhabitants.

As part of this “clearance” operation in recent weeks, 25 people have been taken into police custody, “20,000 euros seized, 15 kilos of cannabis, 6 kilos of cocaine, around ten weapons, long weapons, handguns also seized”he clarified.

“The State will not allow itself to be intimidated and we will intensify our fight against drug banditry”reacted the Minister of the Interior, Bruno Retailleau, who announced the dispatch of the Republican Security Company (CRS) 81, specializing in emergency situations. The Minister Delegate in charge of daily security, Nicolas Daragon, also went to Cavaillon on October 10.

According to the prefect of Vaucluse, Thierry Suquet, a first unit of CRS 81, around forty men, had arrived in Cavaillon on the evening of the 9th, with a second being expected the next day. Asked Monday whether these reinforcements were still present, the prefecture did not immediately respond.

In the South-East, Marseille, a port city, is historically an area of ​​trafficking, particularly drugs. But in recent years, medium-sized towns have experienced an increase in traffic and the violence that goes with it, particularly along the Rhône valley, and particularly in Vaucluse, in Avignon, Cavaillon and Carpentras.