Sentences of eight months to seven years in prison and two acquittals were pronounced Friday, October 9 by the criminal court of Bastia against nine men accused of being involved in international drug trafficking between Spain and Corsica .
Read also: Saint-Ouen: life in a city trapped in drug trafficking
It is a "
difficult file without any direct evidence
" had recognized the deputy prosecutor in pronouncing his requisitions Thursday, demanding sentences ranging from 12 months to 11 years in prison and fines of up to 80,000 euros.
At the heart of the case, nine people were being prosecuted for criminal conspiracy to commit drug trafficking, including three members of the Mattei family, originally from Corscia (Haute-Corse) and well known to the police.
One of these three cousins, Jean-François Mattei did not appear at the hearing and has been the subject of an arrest warrant since March.
He was released after the trial, as was Charles Mattei.
Considered as the main suspects, Marc-Antoine Mattei and Yassine Akhazanne were sentenced to 7 years in prison and a fine of 30,000 euros respectively;
and 18 months in prison.
The lawyer of the first immediately indicated that she wanted to appeal this conviction.
Read also: Drug trafficking: arrest of 18 people in France and Spain
The prosecution argued that Marc-Antoine Mattei, described as "
the main organizer of the traffic
", made 15 trips between Spain and Corsica between 2016 and 2018, in order, according to her, to stock up on narcotics.
What the 32-year-old has firmly denied, claiming to have gone to Spain with Yassine Akhazanne to create "
a chicken farm
".
According to the prosecution, cannabis and cocaine were sold in Balagne, Ajaccio and Propriano.
In this system, five defendants were presented by the prosecution as "
dealers
" and all were released for the head of criminal association but found guilty of drug trafficking.
Jean-Philippe Muddadu, presented as "
the head of the dealers
", was sentenced to five years' imprisonment and a fine of 10,000 euros.
The other four received sentences of less than three years.
For their lawyers who demanded the release, these men are not dealers but simple consumers of narcotics.
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