Drug Kingpin "Bibi" Extradited: France’s Narco Crackdown Reaches Dubai

The United Arab Emirates extradited Abdelkader "Bibi" Bouguettaia to France. Escorted by GIGN agents, the 38-year-old drug trafficker arrived by military plane on Thursday, June 19, after six years on the run in Dubai (United Arab Emirates). He had been living in Dubai since 2019, where he "managed the importation of cocaine." According to a source close to the case, he is also an occasional resident in Morocco. "A new narco-criminal has been extradited to France by the United Arab Emirates. Convicted three times by the French justice system between 2022 and 2023 and subject to two arrest warrants, he will have to answer for his actions," wrote Gérald Darmanin, the French Minister of Justice, on X.

Considered a priority target by the specialized police of the Anti-Narcotics Office (Ofast), he was the subject of two national and European arrest warrants issued successively in 2021 and 2023 for drug trafficking. He has already been convicted in absentia three times to sentences of nine to fifteen years in prison by the Lille court, for cases of cocaine importation. One of his brothers, Bobdellah, who was present, was sentenced to eight years in prison and a fine of 100,000 euros. "Bibi" is accused of having participated in the transport to Le Havre, in 2021, of a container filled with nearly 600 kilos of cocaine from Latin America, transiting through the ports of Rotterdam (Netherlands) and Antwerp (Belgium).

However, "Bibi" does not acknowledge the facts he is accused of. "Mr. Bouguettaia disputes the facts he is accused of," his lawyer, Philippe Ohayon, told L’Express, without going into further detail. According to a judicial source close to the Parisian case, "the file was considered complete, and Mr. Bouguettaia was kept in custody until he had exhausted his appeal options. He was then handed over to the French justice system quite quickly, which highlights a real success in the cooperation between the United Arab Emirates and France."

After this extradition, France hopes for potential extraditions of other traffickers who have taken refuge in the emirate. In total, six individuals particularly wanted by the French justice system have recently been extradited from Dubai to France, according to Gérald Darmanin’s office.