Marseille drug lord gold smuggling diplomatic pouch Morocco

The scale of corruption orchestrated by this network, nicknamed "the Empire," far exceeds French borders. Police investigations, facilitated by the hacking of encrypted messaging service Exclu, uncovered a particularly audacious international money laundering attempt. The clan sought to corrupt a high-ranking security official in the Comoros, holder of a valuable diplomatic pouch. Mohamed Djeha’s objective, alias "Mimo," was to use this immunity to travel gold from Morocco to Turkey. To convince this intermediary, the drug lord promised compensation of 15,000 euros per operation, covering plane and hotel expenses.

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This far-fetched resort to the Moroccan route illustrates the urgency of laundering mountains of cash. The Marseille district of Castellane, considered France’s largest drug sales point, generates staggering profits. According to magistrates’ calculations based on the network’s meticulous account sheets, the organization generates annual revenue exceeding 40 million euros. Between 2022 and 2025, the cumulative illicit income from this sprawling trafficking would amount to nearly 140 million euros, making the creation of international distribution channels essential.

The diplomatic pouch is merely the tip of the iceberg of systemic and institutionalized corruption, notes Le Parisien. Nicknamed "Vito Corleone" in reference to the famous mafia godfather, the drug baron deploys his financial firepower to buy complicity at all levels. The network relies on customs officers, dockers, and even police officers to secure its imports or anticipate raids. Infiltration reaches the heart of public institutions, with the clan even managing to extract confidential information from Social Security to track a rival’s family.

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Despite this overwhelming body of evidence, the mastermind of this criminal syndicate still eludes French justice. Officially imprisoned in Algeria since his arrest in June 2023, Mohamed Djeha reportedly retained the ability to direct his troops and supervise his logistics from his cell. Facing Algiers’ refusal to extradite, Marseille magistrates hope for the opening of a "mirror" investigation on Algerian soil. The stakes are to see him tried and convicted there in order to definitively sever the cord linking him to his lucrative affairs and money laundering networks.