Ecstasy, MDMA, heroin and cocaine: between September 2020 and October 2021, no less than 3,000 drug sales were made by the two men arrested on September 20 in Nantes (Loire-Atlantique) and Le Mans (Sarthe) . They operated via the “darknet” and encrypted Telegram messaging, said the Public Prosecutor of Rennes in a press release on Tuesday, September 27. It took two years of investigation to dismantle this traffic which potentially brought in more than 1.5 million euros to its alleged sponsor.
Looking for “Drugsource”
A 29-year-old man from Nantes is suspected of being the trafficker. Investigators identified him after following up the trail of the one who called himself “drug source” on the networks. His alleged accomplice, a 24-year-old Manceau, admitted in police custody to have played the role of logistician in this very lucrative traffic. The investigators seized “more than 450,000 euros in goods and securities“, whose “432,000 euros in cryptocurrencies, 9,000 euros in cash and 23,000 euros in bank investments“.
– Ministry of Justice
The two men are prosecuted for trafficking in narcotics, possession of prohibited goods without regular supporting documents, customs laundering and laundering of the proceeds of drug trafficking. They face a 10-year prison sentence. Their trial before the criminal court is scheduled for November 14, 2022.
The 29-year-old from Nantes, already convicted in 2020 for internet scams, was placed in pre-trial detention. The 24-year-old Manceau, unknown to justice, was placed under judicial supervision.