The drug delivery man from the Gare de Lyon was indicted this Wednesday in Paris, before being imprisoned.
This 43-year-old man was arrested overnight from Saturday to Sunday by customs officers at the Gare de Lyon (12th arrondissement) as he boarded a train heading for Aix-en-Provence ( Bouches-du-Rhone).
The search of his suitcase led to the discovery of fifty bars of cocaine weighing 58.47 kg.
According to customs officials, this quantity of drugs would be worth more than 1.9 million euros.
But at the retail price on the street, it is estimated at more than 3 million euros.
The forties was placed in customs detention before being transferred to the premises of the narcotics brigade of the Paris judicial police where he was placed in police custody.
Where did the drug come from and who was it intended for?
These are the two questions that the police would now like to answer in this case, which is described as "sensitive", according to authorized circles.
A similar case in 2014 at the Gare du Nord
During the hearings which lasted two days, the rather skinny and totally terrified suspect did not want to confide anything to the police. “He is flabbergasted, underlines a source close to the case. It is the weak link in the chain. He is a guy in a very precarious situation who is on the RSA and who is addicted to cocaine and cannabis. He thought he was making a little money and just lost it all. »
This seizure of importance is exceptional because it occurred in a large Parisian station.
The last similar case dates from 2014 at the Gare du Nord.
Cocaine arrives in the Paris region by two routes.
By sea, locked in containers that land in Le Havre (Seine-Maritime), Belgium or Holland.
The drug also lands via Orly airport (Val-de-Marne), ingested mainly by mules, originating from Guyana or Suriname.
This seizure demonstrates that the Paris region is a hub for provincial drug markets.
She also confirms that the rail is used to transport drugs.