Drug trafficking network dismantled in Toulouse: 25 kg of coins seized from dealers
A large-scale operation conducted by the judicial police, the RAID and riot police resulted in the dismantling of a drug trafficking network in the Saint-Aubin neighbourhood in Toulouse. Investigators seized over one kilogram of cocaine, diverted medications and 25 kilograms of coins from begging.
Drug trafficking network dismantled in Toulouse: 25 kg of coins seized from dealers
Law enforcement put an end to an illicit trade that was poisoning life in central Toulouse. The operation targeted the areas around Saint-Aubin and Occitane squares, as well as the Arnaud-Vidal district. Officers discovered over one kilogram of cocaine, dozens of tablets of pregabalin and Lyrica, more than ten thousand euros in cash, cutting equipment, scales and several mobile phones, according to La Dépêche du Midi.
The operation brought together investigators from Toulouse's judicial police, officers from the DIPN of Haute-Garonne, units of the RAID, riot police and municipal police. Nine individuals were apprehended in total: seven suspected network members and two users. All were taken into custody, extended for two days by a judge, and then brought before the prosecutor.
The investigation has exposed a criminal system founded on the exploitation of the most vulnerable. The sellers operated from an address on Arnaud-Vidal street, frequented by homeless people living in squats along the canal and on neighbouring squares. The mechanism was simple: passers-by gave a few cents to these people in precarious situations, who then exchanged them for drugs. The raids resulted in the seizure of over three thousand euros in small coins, equivalent to approximately twenty-five kilograms of metal coins. The dealers were mainly selling diverted medications, particularly pregabalin and Lyrica, anti-epileptic treatments that have become a substitute drug sold for two euros per tablet.
This working-class neighbourhood was experiencing daily deterioration due to crack and heroin. As early as April, associations and small traders had alerted the authorities to the growth of trafficking in broad daylight. A report from the municipal police had already identified this sales point a year earlier. During the evening of the raid, many impoverished customers were wandering the streets looking for their suppliers, until officers informed them that the operation was closed.
Source: Google News FR — Crime (fr)