Syrian people-smuggler network: eight years' custodial sentence for Épinal leader
The head of a Syrian people-smuggling operation routing migrants through French Guiana has been sentenced to eight years' custodial imprisonment by the Épinal court. He has also been ordered to pay a €400,000 fine and faces a permanent ban from residing in France.
Sentenced to eight years for smuggling between 400 and 500 Syrians via French Guiana
The Épinal district court (Vosges) sentenced a 36-year-old Syrian man to eight years' custodial imprisonment on Thursday 3 September for running one of France's largest networks of Syrian people-smugglers, according to TF1 Info. The man, whose immigration status was lawful, has also been ordered to pay a €400,000 fine and faces a permanent ban from residing in France.
The public prosecutor's office, represented by Jean-Emmanuel Besset, described the case as "one of the largest, if not the largest Syrian immigration pipeline in France". Between 2021 and 2025, the defendant is alleged to have smuggled between 400 and 500 migrants, representing "between 10 and 15 per cent of Syrian immigration to France", the public prosecutor's office stated.
Based in Épinal, the man operated under the name "La Sultana Tours". He offered compatriots — predominantly from the Druze community — the opportunity to reach metropolitan France in exchange for between €1,000 and €8,000. The route used Venezuela, then French Guiana, before reaching the mainland.
The investigation was launched in October 2025 following intelligence passed to the Metz office of the service combating illegal migrant trafficking, which flagged a smuggling network operating from Épinal. Investigators discovered promotional videos for "La Sultana Tours" circulated on WhatsApp. Taken into custody in early July, the network leader was subsequently remanded in custody.
At the hearing, the defendant admitted to operating a "travel agent business", claiming he had wanted to "help his compatriots" as a "citizen". Assisted by an interpreter, he apologised several times, stating he had not known he was breaking the law. Having left Venezuela at 21 years of age to study law, he subsequently lived in Brazil before settling in Épinal to join his wife. Migrants who had used his network were interviewed during the investigation and confirmed they had used his services to enter France.
The eight-year sentence imposed is in line with the prosecution's recommendations. The defendant faced charges of aiding the illegal entry, movement and residence of foreign nationals in France as part of an organised group, and was liable to up to ten years' imprisonment.
Source: TF1 Info