He was one of the most important figures of banditry in Marseille.
Suspected of being involved in a settling of scores at the end of August in the Marseille city, Kamel Meziani, was indicted in particular for "organized gang assassinations" and imprisoned, the Marseille prosecutor's office announced on Tuesday.
Arrested on August 31, the suspect is also indicted for "destruction by fire" and "concealment of theft" by an organized gang, "possession of weapons" and finally "participation in a criminal association with a view to preparing crimes. in an organized group, ”said the prosecutor of Marseille, Dominique Laurens.
Kamel Meziani, 37, is suspected of being involved in the death of two men aged 25 and 26 on August 22 in the Marseille city of the Blue Navy, the prosecutor said.
According to a source close to the investigation, the thirty-something would also be one of the bosses of a major drug trafficking network in Marseille, that of the city of Olives.
Sentenced to 30 years in prison
He was sentenced in January, in his absence, to 30 years of criminal imprisonment for the death of young men in another settling of scores in 2016. He was suspected in this case of having provided arms to two of his lieutenants.
The man was also sentenced to 14 years imprisonment for drug trafficking on repeat.
In the wake of his arrest, five other people were arrested in Marseille and the Paris region.
Two of them were presented to an examining magistrate with a view to their indictment for "destruction by fire", "concealment of theft by an organized gang", "possession of weapons" and "conspiracy of criminals in view. preparation for organized crime ”.
They were also imprisoned.
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Since the start of the year, 15 people have died in settlements linked to drug trafficking in the Bouches-du-Rhône, according to the head of the judicial police Eric Arella. The summer was marked by an outbreak of violence against a backdrop of competition on “deal points” in certain neighborhoods. Drug trafficking generates considerable sums, up to 80,000 euros per day in the City of Olives, fueling greed and turf wars.