Romanian truck driver fined $29 mn over French cocaine haul

Romanian truck driver fined $29 mn over French cocaine haul
by AFP Staff Writers
Lille, France (AFP) April 10, 2025
A French court on Thursday ordered a Romanian truck driver to pay a 28.8 million euro ($29 million) fine and sent him to jail for 10 years after finding 438 kilograms of cocaine in his vehicle, prosecutors said.

The case is the latest to be dealt with in France where record amounts of cocaine have flooded the country, with Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau saying France faces a "white tsunami".

In 2024, French law enforcement seized 53.5 tonnes of cocaine, up 130 percent compared with 2023 (23 tonnes), interior ministry data shows.

Custom officers had to use an industrial grinder to cut through the rear wall of the truck in February to find the hidden bricks of cocaine, prosecutors said. The size of the fine imposed by a court in the northern town of Cambrai was based on the value of the drug.

Related Links
21st Century Pirates

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters

RELATED CONTENT

The following news reports may link to other Space Media Network websites.

Chinese sailors missing off Ghana in suspected pirate attack
Accra (AFP) Mar 30, 2025
Three Chinese nationals are missing after their vessel came under a "suspected pirate attack" off the coast of Ghana, authorities said over the weekend. The apparent kidnapping is the latest in the Gulf of Guinea, an area off the Atlantic coast of Africa whose waters - rich in hydrocarbons and fisheries - stretch across a slew of jurisdictions, including those of countries with limited naval and coast guard capacities. Just before 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, seven armed individuals boarded the Meng ... read more

Turning wood waste into ultra strong material

Tunisian startup turns olive waste into clean energy

Airlines cast doubt on EU sustainable fuel targets

Eco friendly low-cost energy storage system from pine biomass

Going green with fluoride-enhanced perovskite solar cells

Government urged to address disparity in access to green tech

Launch of AI-powered solar diagnostics platform boosts PV asset performance

Solar park boom threatens Spain's centuries-old olive trees

Chinese energy giant Goldwind posts annual growth as overseas drive deepens

Clean energy giant Goldwind leads China's global sector push

Engineers' new design of offshore energy system clears key hurdle

Student refines 100-year-old math problem, expanding wind energy possibilities

Using liquid air for grid-scale energy storage

AI surge to double data centre electricity demand by 2030: IEA

Iraq signs deal with US firm to produce 24,000 MW of electricity

Tajikistan to jail people for illegal electricity use

Sophisticated fire use revealed in Ice Age hearths from Ukraine

Chinese EV battery giant CATL posts 33% surge in Q1 profit

A new path to self-powered infrastructure with thermoelectric cement

Smart home platform lowers energy costs and boosts grid resilience

Clean streets vs business woes: pollution charge divides Londoners

EU greenlights new microplastic rules after tensions

Global plastic recycling rates 'stagnant' at under 10%: study

Illegal mining on Indigenous lands in Brazil dropped under Lula: report

World-first flight test reveals how hydrogen engines form contrails

UN shipping body approves global carbon pricing system

Interior Department says more oil discovered under Gulf of Mexico

Yemen rebel media says US strikes on Hodeida killed 12: new toll

How to engineer microbes to enable us to live on Mars

A step closer to Martian survival as lichens endure harsh red planet conditions

Martian dust may endanger astronaut health during surface missions

ExoMars rover to land on Mars aboard European-built platform

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters

The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2026 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.