Morocco Remains Major Source as French Customs Seize Record Cannabis Haul

Last year, the customs of Nouvelle-Aquitaine set historical records in the areas of drugs and criminal assets. In total, 4.46 million euros in criminal assets were intercepted, which represents an increase of 148% compared to 2021. "We make seizures, which sometimes approach one million euros, or even exceed one million euros, in a single vehicle. This money is hidden in the vehicle’s organs, just like the narcotics, in the same way," explains Serge Puccetti, the interregional director of customs for Nouvelle-Aquitaine, to France 3.

What about drug seizures? The customs officers of Nouvelle-Aquitaine seized 709 kg of cocaine last year. In December 2022, they also seized an amount representing a market value of more than 40 million euros at resale. Their third best result is the seizure of 11.3 tons of cannabis from Spain and Morocco, or "20% of national seizures." "What we can notice is that this increase in the region, we see it more or less everywhere in France, in Europe, and even in the world," assures Serge Puccetti. "We are seeing an increase in cocaine consumption year after year."

And to explain: "the cannabis comes from the south with a very strong production from Morocco, a buffer zone in Spain, with a storage activity, and then criminal organizations that will go and get drugs in Spain to bring them back up."