The Salle des Pas Perdus of the old courthouse in Paris transformed into a show room. As at the BHV, you can find a bit of everything: Gucci shoes, Louis Vuitton bags, Rolex watches, Prada glasses, Playstation 5s, Dyson vacuum cleaners. But also furniture, jewellery, a quad, bicycles and even a drill… All the objects on offer, often flashy, have been seized by the courts in the context of cases linked to drug trafficking. Their auction is organized this Tuesday by the Agency for the Management and Recovery of Seized and Confiscated Assets (Agrasc) and by the National Directorate of State Interventions (DNID).
The Minister of the Economy, who made the trip in the morning, stops for a moment in front of lot 177: Dior silk pajamas, apple green. Starting price: 200 euros. “Honestly, Eric, that would suit you very well! says Gabriel Attal to the Keeper of the Seals. “If you buy it this afternoon, I promise you I’ll put it on,” replies, amused, Éric Dupond-Moretti.
“It’s a virtuous circle”
The 277 objects offered in the catalog were acquired “with the money of the crime”, underlines the Minister of Justice. The proceeds from the auction will “be used to fight drug traffickers and help drug addicts. It’s a virtuous circle,” he says. “We want to increase the means for our police, our gendarmes and our customs officers, to fight effectively against drug trafficking. We also want to increase the means for our prevention policies, to prevent drug addiction. All the money we can find is good to take. We now hope to obtain an additional million euros from this sale, ”adds Gabriel Attal.
“The proceeds from this sale will go to the drug competition fund managed by Mildeca”, explains to 20 minutes Nicolas Prisse, the president of the interministerial mission for the fight against drugs and addictive behavior. The money earned “is then donated to the ministries in charge of the fight: the Interior, with the police and the gendarmerie, Justice, and Bercy, with the general directorate of customs and indirect rights which is very active in the ports. and airports. Mildeca keeps 10% of the fund to carry out actions in the field of prevention”, he specifies.
A “fun” idea
The two ministers continue their stroll in the auction room, where luxury watches are exhibited. “They have been completely disassembled and inspected,” assures Geoffroy Ader, watchmaking expert at Place Vendôme. The piece with the highest estimate is a Rolex Daytona, “an iconic model that has been around for sixty years”. Starting price: 8,000 euros. “This is one of the latest versions, with a ceramic bezel,” explains the expert. Some watches have been “customised”, that is to say set with diamonds. “It is an outward sign of wealth” for the traffickers who had acquired it, observes Geoffroy Ader.
Pierre drags his long white beard past the stands of luxury sneakers. “I find the idea of appropriating an object from this environment amusing”, laughs this taxi driver. “It’s a kind of appropriation of pop culture by Parisian boho, if you will,” he adds. François is attending an auction for the first time. “They were acquired illegally, so if money can come back to the state through this, it’s a fair return,” he observes. There would be no illusions: in view of the world present in court, the auctions are likely to fly away very quickly.
“He bought luxury vehicles which he resold”
At 1 p.m., the sale begins in the “major trials” room, which normally hosts exceptional hearings, such as the trial of November 13. More than 11,000 people also follow her live on the Internet. The highlight is a white Lamborghini Huracan, parked in the courtyard of the courthouse. It was “confiscated by the court of Lorient”, indicates Nicolas Bessone, the general manager of Agrasc. Its former owner “was in the laundering of drug trafficking, he bought luxury vehicles which he resold”, he points out.
Eventually arousing little interest, its price, set at 160,000 euros, is revised downwards. In the room, a man raises his hand, a surfer adds behind. The battle between the two buyers is raging. The sportswoman is finally won by the Internet user, who will have paid 138,000 euros to afford it.