Telegram drug trafficking ring busted in the Doubs region
Published: Monday, Dec 9th 2024, 18:30
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Police in the French-Swiss border region of Doubs have busted an online drug trafficking ring operating via the Telegram platform. The network supplied more than 400 users and generated a turnover of more than 1.1 million euros since the account was opened in 2022.
Ten people suspected of being involved in the drug delivery service were arrested last week in Pontarlier near the Swiss border, as the public prosecutor of Besançon, Étienne Manteaux, announced at a media conference on Monday. The drugs "supermarket" ranged from cannabis to cocaine, ecstasy, methamphetamines, ketamine and nitrous oxide.
The "leader" of the network and his partner, both 29 years old, as well as a 44-year-old man will have to answer to the Besançon criminal court from January 24. The organizer of the drug ring partly ran the smuggling operation from prison, where he was incarcerated until last May.
"That's the strength of this type of platform: a person can run a drug trafficking ring from their prison cell using a smartphone," Manteaux noted.
A 20-year-old woman and two men aged 23 and 44, who were actively involved in drug trafficking but did not play a leading role, have already been sentenced in so-called guilty plea proceedings to prison terms of between ten months and three years, two of which were suspended.
The other defendants, underage and adult suppliers, will be tried at a later date.
©Keystone/SDA
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