Le Figaro Marseille
The sun sets on the Paternal, still letting enough light escape to observe the scars of the vast drug trafficking that was established there for many years.
Not far from the city's
"Drive"
, where customers arrived by car to buy their cannabis resin, a pink tag is written on a wall.
“Yoda”
, as if to mark the territory of this gang whose dispute with its sworn enemy, the DZ Mafia, is responsible for at least thirty deaths in the Marseille city.
It was from this emblematic city in the northern districts of Marseille that these two clans fought for control of deal points in the city, using weapons of war as a form of intimidation and even calling on real assassins. pledge to execute prominent members of their organizations.
Since the beginning of 2023, these mysterious aliases have been making headlines in the press following the settling of scores which have undermined the many sensitive neighborhoods of Marseille, where drug trafficking is in full swing and represents an abundant source of income for criminals.
At the end of one of the deadliest years in 2023, at least 49 people died and more than a hundred were injured during shootings against a backdrop of drug trafficking in France's second city.
In total, 73% of these intentional homicides by organized gangs or attempts have a link with the DZ Mafia and Yoda, as recalled by the public prosecutor of Marseille, Nicolas Bessone.
Since then, the shooting has strangely stopped, giving way to a worrying form of ceasefire.
Has the conflict become bogged down?
The action of the Marseille police forces, who contributed to the arrest of 138 members of the two gangs, the
“shortage”
of available fighters or the idea that one side would have gained the upper hand over the other are credible explanations.
In the meantime, the figures of
“DZ”
and
“Yoda”
continue to act in the shadows, out of sight.
Le Figaro
takes stock of the origins of these two murderous clans which have not finished spilling ink.
A conflict that takes root in Marseille and began in Thailand
Close observers of the conflict between the DZ Mafia and Yoda place its genesis in February 2023, in a dark nightclub located more than 9,000 kilometers from France.
At the time, two dangerous individuals had been fighting each other for many months for control of the deal points at La Paternelle, their favorite playground located in the 14th arrondissement of Marseille.
Mehdi L., known as
“Tic”
, is the boss of the DZ Mafia, an acronym familiarly designating people from Algeria.
He and his brother are well known to the courts and were sentenced in 2017 to 10 and 25 years of criminal imprisonment respectively in the context of the
“Marseille barbecue”
affair .
The two thirty-year-olds and a sponsor were found guilty of a triple murder that occurred on Christmas Eve 2011, in Marseille, against a backdrop of drug trafficking.
Three young men were lured into an ambush before being shot, placed in their car and burned along with the vehicle.
In prison, the two brothers can no longer manage their daily affairs, mainly linked to drug trafficking.
Behind their backs, Félix B., aka
“the Cat”
, is jubilant.
The absence of the two brothers, who cohabited with the Cat within the walls of the Paternal, led Félix B. to quietly develop his business with his allies from the Yoda clan, named after the Star Wars hero
whose
face is tagged on a Paternal wall.
An affront that does not go unnoticed by his lifelong neighbors.
The rest of the story is even better known and could be entitled to its own adaptation into a feature-length detective film.
In the Thai nightclub, located in a seaside resort in the south of the country, Tic and Cat come face to face, at the height of the climate of tension that has developed between them.
During a heated exchange, one of the bosses receives several ice cubes on the head as a provocation, triggering a general fight.
After this episode, a real
“vendetta”
took place at La Paternelle but also elsewhere in cities hosting deal points belonging to the two gangs.
“The two groups, who until then worked in good harmony, killed each other in the name of futile reasons
,” explains Rudy Manna, national spokesperson for the Alliance Police union, to Le
Figaro
.
“Jobbers”
,
the small hands of trafficking made up of lookouts or ephemeral sellers recruited throughout France to ensure the trade of network heads on the ground, are regularly targeted by automatic weapon fire.
Bursts of Kalashnikovs are fired at point-blank range at young individuals from the opposing camp as a form of intimidation, leaving several dead and many injured near deal points.
“This incredible violence, against a backdrop of territorial war, has reached the height of absurdity
,” continues Rudy Manna.
Far from the northern districts, the heads of networks will go so far as to hire real hitmen to execute certain eminent members of their rivals, sometimes even abroad.
One of these commandos, recently dismantled and referred thanks to close cooperation between France and Spain, was commissioned last May by the DZ Mafia to eliminate two members of the Yoda in Catalonia.
A
“paroxysmal”
event according to the Marseille prosecutor, describing last Monday an organization
“capable of assassinating members of the opposing clan abroad”.
Little by little, this bloody conflict took its toll on the numbers of the two gangs, which became considerably thinner over the months and the settling of scores.
The Marseille police forces, seized of more than sixty cases last year, contributed to the arrest of dozens of
“DZ”
and
“Yoda”
following long-term investigations.
“In total, seven DZ Mafia commandos were neutralized last year, including two who were preparing to take action
,” Pascal Bonnet, deputy to the judicial police in the south of France, explained on Monday.
“The police arrests were a serious blow to both groups.
The Father, for her part, no longer has any deal points.
Jobbers from all over France no longer want to come there
,” says Rudy Manna.
It feels like history is repeating itself.
These thugs are associated until something goes wrong like one word too many or a disagreement.
These are ego wounds that become mortal wounds.
Denis Trossero, journalist and author of the book “Settlements of accounts in Marseille” (Mareuil Éditions)
This
“lull”
should, however, be taken with a grain of salt.
The conflict, if it seems to be on pause, leaves behind a void conducive to the development of new protagonists.
“The state of tension remains very high, the drug traffickers are still trying to hold on to their deal points.
The conflict between the DZ Mafia and the Yodas suits other teams who maintain their own networks, the attention being mainly focused on these two clans
,” continues Rudy Manna.
The provisional results of this war, if unprecedented today in Marseille, are reminiscent of other historical disputes which have continued to develop in the Marseille city for other resources.
“There have always been turf wars between thugs in Marseille. Between 1992 and 1993, 20 people died simply for controlling a nightclub in Luynes
,” recalls Denis Trossero, journalist and author of the book
“Settlements of Accounts in Marseille”
(Mareuil Éditions), in Le
Figaro
.
“Just like
Francis Le Belge, Jacky Imbert or Tany Zampa
who belonged to the same gang at one point, the DZ Mafia and Yoda ended up tearing each other apart and creating rivalries that went to the death.
It feels like history is repeating itself.
These thugs are associated until something goes wrong like one word too many or a disagreement.
These are ego wounds that become mortal wounds
,” he analyzes.
According to the authorities, the DZ Mafia clan has today gained the upper hand over its rival Yoda, explaining the start of this
“lull”
between the two gangs in Marseille.
The Tic and the Cat hide far from the city.
It is rumored that the two bosses continue to supervise their respective businesses from abroad.
But for how much longer?