This is one of the most beautiful seizures in recent years. On Wednesday morning, the gendarmes got their hands on the stock of a drug trafficking network that was hidden in a box in Fleury-Mérogis. In total, the soldiers took away 409 kg of cannabis resin, with an estimated market value of €1.4 million. Six young men between the ages of 17 and 26 were taken into custody. Investigators from the research brigade of the Essonne gendarmerie group, assisted by their colleagues from the Paris Research Section, had been keeping an eye on this "well-structured" network, according to a source close to the investigation, since October.
At that time, the gendarmes set up surveillance with the support of the Groupe d'observation et de surveillance d'Île-de-France. These plainclothes agents blend into the background to note the comings and goings and stick to the basques of the various actors in the network.
In particular, they note that people come from all over the department to buy drugs from the network. It is also this monitoring that makes it possible to house the stock. On Wednesday, a legal operation was set up to bring down this deal point in a settlement. Some of those arrested are already known to the courts. Others had never been talked about before.
Trafficking and criminal conspiracy
After 48 hours in police custody on Friday, the public prosecutor's office in Évry-Courcouronnes decided to open a judicial investigation for drug trafficking and criminal association. The aim of this investigation, now in the hands of an investigating judge, will be to establish the architecture of the network and to determine the role of each of the accused. According to our information, the alleged head of this network is one of six young people arrested.
The last major intake of cannabis resin in Essonne dates back to October 2022. 212 kg discovered by the gendarmes of the Palaiseau company. They also found more than €300,000 in cash, weapons, two vehicles and the seizure of 1,500 cartons of counterfeit cigarettes.