Gérald Darmanin takes stock of the fight against drug trafficking, in an interview on Tuesday March 16 with Le Parisien.
He points out that despite a year 2020 marked by confinement and curfew, "
drug seizures were very important, sometimes even on the rise compared to previous years
".
To read also: "Drugs irrigate almost all delinquency"
The Minister of the Interior explains that at the end of one year of existence of Ofast (the office for the fight against drugs recomposed in February 2020), there were "
96 tonnes of cannabis seized, including 15 tonnes for the month of November 2020 alone. 13 tonnes of cocaine, 1.1 tonnes of heroin and 1.2 million ecstasy tablets
”.
"
The number of traffickers arrested," he continues, "is also increasing sharply and the seizures of criminal assets have also increased
", from "
from 78 million euros in 2019 to 82 million in 2020
".
450 of the 3,952 deal points identified in France have been dismantled
It figures at 50,000 the number of fixed tort fines (AFD) for the use of narcotics since their creation in September, with for February “
10,776 fines drawn up
”.
Regarding the 3952 points of deal identified in France in September, Mr. Darmanin says that “
450
” have been dismantled.
“
We are going to step up the pace,
” he said.
Asked about the settling of scores, the minister explains that there is "
a very strong link between this violence and drugs
".
"
Last year," he says, "violence between traffickers left more than 250 wounded (half of whom are under 25), and 60 dead
".
"
A point of deal today is between 20,000 and 80,000 euros of turnover in cash per day, the stakes are therefore very high for traffickers
."
He notes that the traffickers are more armed than in the past: “
In November 2019, when trafficking was dismantled, 8% of those arrested were carrying firearms.
Today it is 22%
”.
He reviews the adaptations of traffickers to transport their goods in these times of pandemic (mailing, home delivery, use of social networks etc.) Concerning the occupation of building halls, Mr. Darmanin announces the "
introduction in October of a system of flat-rate fines
”.
This "will
allow, he adds, to verbalize but also to register these controlled people in the criminal record file and thus to better identify those who work as little hands in the networks
".
Finally, the Minister announces the launch of a "
vast communication campaign
" against drugs, to explain that it is "
really shit
".
Such a campaign had not taken place since "
the beginning of the 1980s
".