Le Figaro Nice
The sun is setting and the facades of buildings in the Moulins district of Nice are tinged with orange as a man in shiny shoes walks by.
Improvised wandering, Tuesday evening, for Bernard Gonzalez, prefect of the Alpes-Maritimes, in the city which has been talked about in recent weeks.
Drug trafficking, weapons, intimidation and shooting... The representative of the State evoked a
"territorial war"
and
"a Marseille-style drift"
that had to be prevented, a week earlier, during a press conference .
Visit for an inventory since?
The prefect walks around, escorted by police, among residents who recognize his face.
“I saw you at the meeting
, throws a resident to him in reference to the exchange with the mayor of Nice, Christian Estrosi, the prosecutor and himself organized on March 30.
We don't want to live between crossfire... But we got used to it."
Bernard Gonzalez takes it up in a dry tone:
“We don't get used to that”
.
This wandering, punctuated by a few
“Arah!”
distant - the cry of the lookouts to alert of a police presence - was also intended to
"comfort the workforce"
, according to the prefect.
And to announce a new important catch, even if the arrests are daily, he swears.
On Tuesday, seven people were arrested by the police in connection with drug trafficking.
In a "nursery" apartment, seven kilos of cannabis resin were found, as well as three weapons, including a shotgun and two pistols, as well as 13,000 euros in cash.
Read also“We are terrified, help us”: in Nice, the inhabitants of an “infernal tower” subject to the laws of drug trafficking
Police policy
Among the individuals, a sample of the “typical” network in this district: a minor (16 years old), foreigners in an irregular situation and locals.
During the intervention, cobblestones were thrown at two police vehicles, breaking their windshields.
“At Les Moulins, there are deal points which, once dismantled, quickly come back into place.
We are obliged to intensify our presence because it is also an attractive district for the consumer because of its position”
, underlines Bernard Gonzalez.
Several young people wander around the crowd.
One listens and launches, agitated:
"It's good to dismantle the deal points, but you have to give them work to people!"
Social distress also exists in this district, to the west of the city.
In addition to the display operation (
“I am here because my men are there every day and every night”
), the prefect did not fail to react to the various remarks of the mayor of the city, Christian Estrosi.
"I don't do politics, but the police
," he insisted.
Regarding the armed security guards that the municipality wishes to deploy with social landlords, Bernard Gonzalez did not reject the idea.
"Security is a co-production, we are together
," he said.
I think it can exist as it has existed in the past, with concierges in the bars to ensure security.
The modalities concerning the carrying of weapons will be discussed with the judicial authorities
.
Need I remind you that we are eliminating holidays, that we are eliminating rest days to ensure safety?
Bernard Gonzalez, prefect of the Alpes-Maritimes
In an interview published Wednesday in
Le Figaro
, Christian Estrosi charges the State and the Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin.
"I have the impression that we are being laughed at"
, annoyed the city councilor, who added to it on RTL by criticizing
"an operational management in the chain of command that I find it difficult to understand between the ministry, the prefect, the chief of staff and the director of departmental security”
.
Read alsoChristian Estrosi: “Mr. Darmanin, I have the impression that we are being made fun of!”
Unjustified remarks according to Bernard Gonzalez, a bit circumspect:
“There have never been so many resources committed.
Me, I don't make fun of anyone
, he reacts.
I feel sorry for the commitment of the women and men of the police for what they do day and night here at Les Moulins.
Need I remind you that we are eliminating holidays, that we are eliminating rest days to ensure safety?
Before returning to the episode of the Zavatta-Muller circus, at the heart of a new imbroglio during the Easter weekend, and whose prefectural response was criticized by the city councilor of Nice.
Bernard Gonzalez was not in Nice and had to come back to mediate.
"I'm reading this as I avoided Nice being stuck on the A8 motorway during
, he laments.
I feel like a police chief!
Here, the sensitivity for the theme of security reaches its climax.”
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