In tears, the defendant roughly wipes his face between grimaces.
For Giorgios M., it is difficult to accept the sentence imposed this Wednesday by the Senlis court.
This Greek national residing in the Netherlands has just been sentenced to 12 months in prison, seven of which will be suspended, a customs fine of 25,000 euros as well as a ban on French territory for ten years.
“It was stupid of me, now I’ve lost my family,” he sobbed.
I swear I didn't know what was in that car.
» On March 17, this 45-year-old man was arrested around 4 p.m. with his wife's vehicle, at the Chamant tollbooth, on the A1, by the customs services.
Hidden behind the central console of the family car, two loaves of heroin weighing 412 g each, with a total value estimated at around 45,000 euros.
Several visits to France in recent months
During his arrest, Giorgios explained that he had to go to Poitiers (Vienna) in order to recover a sum of money.
A mission proposed by the man who supplies him with cannabis in Holland, paid to the tune of 500 euros according to him.
A sponsor whose identity he cannot provide.
If Giorgios insists that he never knew what the vehicle contained, the investigators' checks will reveal that this car has been in France three times in recent months, on different routes: the A3 towards Paris, a national towards Angoulême or on the A10 in the Bordeaux-Paris direction.
The justifications of the defendant, who recognizes these journeys, will have the greatest difficulty convincing the judges.
Also read: A 12-year-old dealer arrested in Compiègne: “He is one of the main heroin dealers in the neighborhood”
The first pass?
A trip to the amusement park with his son.
The second, he went to a hotel in Poitiers to do some sightseeing.
The last one, it was after an argument with his wife that he decided to take the road towards France, a country that he particularly likes because “there are few traffic jams”.
This former restaurateur who went bankrupt finds himself in a delicate economic situation.
Indebted to the tune of 350,000 euros, he only receives 120 euros of his 2,400 euros temporary salary each month because of salary deductions to repay his creditors.
A situation noted by the prosecutor, which did not prevent her from requesting the exact sentence issued by the court.
“We may find it unfair that it is the small hands of trafficking who are condemned for the benefit of the sponsors, but it is by depriving this network of its workforce that we can organize the fight against drug trafficking.
»