Violinist arrested with 38 kg of cocaine at La Turbie toll station, weapons found in Besançon
A violinist from the Victor-Hugo Bourgogne-Franche-Comté orchestra was apprehended on 10 August on the A8 motorway with 38.33 kg of cocaine. His home contained 90,000 euros in cash and four firearms.
Violinist apprehended at La Turbie with 38 kg of cocaine from Albania
Google News FR — Crime (fr) reports that a professional violinist, 45, an intermittent member of the Victor-Hugo Bourgogne-Franche-Comté symphonic orchestra (OVH), was arrested on 10 August at the toll station at La Turbie on the A8 motorway in the Alpes-Maritimes, in possession of 38.33 kilograms of cocaine concealed beneath the floor mat of his Citroën C5 Aircross.
Customs officers, during a routine inspection at the Franco-Italian border, discovered the goods, valued at more than 1.1 million euros for resale. The musician was returning from Albania, his country of origin, at the time of his apprehension.
Search in Besançon: weapons and cash seized
Placed in custody in Nice, the suspect was subject to a search at his home in Besançon. Investigators found 90,000 euros in cash, four firearms in categories B and C, as well as a substantial stock of ammunition.
When questioned about these discoveries, the man stated that the cash sum corresponded to a donation from his father, and that possession of the weapons was explained by his practice of sport shooting.
Trial postponed to 9 October 2026
Presented for immediate trial before the Nice criminal court, the musician — with a clean criminal record — stated, according to Nice-Matin, that he had agreed to this transport in exchange for a fee of 20,000 euros, a contract obtained through acquaintances during a stay in Albania.
"I cannot explain how I could have come to this," he declared during his questioning.
Trained at several French conservatoires — in Lyon, Dijon and Besançon — the suspect is held in provisional detention pending his trial set for 9 October 2026. The Nice prosecutor's office is pursuing him notably for transport, possession, acquisition and importation of narcotic substances.
The orchestra distances itself
The direction of the musical ensemble wished to clarify that the arrest did not take place during the musician's activities with the OVH, and that he was one of 41 intermittent musicians among the 71 that make up the orchestra, and not among the 30 permanent members.
The municipality of Besançon also wished to emphasise that this is "the action of a single individual which is not to be associated with the Victor Hugo orchestra".
Source: Google News FR — Crime (fr)