Syrian smuggling network in the Vosges: 8 years in prison and €400,000 fine
A Syrian-origin resident of Épinal has been sentenced to 8 years in prison for leading a migrant trafficking network via South America.
Migrant trafficking via Guiana: network leader sentenced in Épinal
A 36-year-old resident of Épinal of Syrian origin was sentenced on Thursday 3 September 2026 to 8 years in prison by the Épinal criminal court, according to reports from Google News FR — Crime (fr). He was found guilty of leading a network of smugglers transporting Syrian migrants to France via South America. The court also imposed a fine of €400,000 against him and a permanent ban from French territory.
The court president followed the prosecutor's submissions in their entirety.
A route passing through Turkey, Venezuela and Brazil
According to the investigation, the network transported Syrian migrants from their country of origin to French Guiana, transiting through Turkey, Venezuela and Brazil. Once they arrived in Cayenne, the migrants filed asylum requests before travelling to mainland France, where they most often settled in the Grand Est region.
The cost of the journey was between 800 and 1,000 dollars, an average of 777 euros. The services were reportedly offered through videos distributed on WhatsApp, under the guise of the company "La Sultana Tours", of which the convicted man was the manager. Financial flows also went through Brazil, according to investigators, which led the Épinal public prosecutor's office to file an international penal investigation request, which was received by Brazilian authorities.
Metz's OLTIM at the heart of the investigation
The investigation was triggered after an intelligence note from the International Security Cooperation Directorate informed the Metz office of the Anti-Illegal Migrant Trafficking (OLTIM) of the existence of this route. The Republic's Prosecutor for Épinal, Frédéric Nahon, had specified in a statement that the alleged leader, of Syrian nationality, was domiciled in Épinal.
The man had been taken into police custody on 29 June 2026. Dozens of migrants had been questioned by investigators, both at the Metz OLTIM offices and in Guiana, and had confirmed the investigations carried out. In total, between 400 and 600 Syrian migrants are believed to have used this network between 2021 and 2025.
He was prosecuted for aiding the entry, circulation or illegal stay of a foreigner in France as part of an organised group, as well as for fraudulent possession of forged administrative documents.
The defence contests the designation as network leader
At the hearing, the convicted man acknowledged part of the facts but contested the designation as network leader. His lawyer, Elliot Bersegol, strongly criticised the severity of the sentence. "It is a very severe sentence, a very heavy sentence that we are accustomed to seeing in cases that have absolutely nothing to do with the one tried today, cases in which the offences being prosecuted are different, much more serious, cases in which there are dozens of deaths," he stated.
The lawyer also contested the presentation of his client as a smuggler in the usual sense of the term. "Today we are dealing with a smuggler, and I contest this label, who felt responsible and who was able to say that these Syrians were his. He felt responsible and he was keen that everything proceeded under the best conditions possible and everything always went well," he continued.
Source: Google News FR — Crime (fr)