The A9 motorway between France and Spain is, for customs officers in Aude and the Pyrénées-Orientales in particular, an opportunity to make very large drug seizures.
After the laundry barrels, it was this time under furniture that customs officers discovered 308 kg of cannabis pollen in Perthus, on the border with Spain, on June 19.
The drugs were in a truck registered in Lithuania, with two drivers of Russian nationality on board. Tried in immediate appearance, they were both sentenced to three years in prison with continued detention, and banned from national territory for ten years upon their release from prison. They also face a customs fine worth 616,000 euros (equivalent to the value of the goods).
Refusal to comply and Moroccan suitcases
A few days earlier, it was in Narbonne that customs officers had spotted a vehicle coming from Perpignan. “The elements found during the search indicate the car as a scout for the transport of prohibited goods,” explain customs. The bikers immediately spot a vehicle that could serve as a carrier.
After a chase, they arrested the driver of the second vehicle, near Lézignan-Corbières (Aude). With fourteen Moroccan suitcases containing 570 kg of cannabis resin on board. The accused will be tried later.