French authorities seized 156.7 tonnes of drugs in 2022, Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin announced on Wednesday March 1. "The fight against drug trafficking is more than ever the mother of all battles", hammered Mr. Darmanin during a joint press conference alongside the Minister of Justice, Eric Dupond-Moretti, and that of accounts public, Gabriel Attal.
In detail, 128 tons of cannabis were seized (15% compared to the previous year), which represents a record at "no comparable level", according to the Minister of the Interior. In 2022, 27 tonnes of cocaine (5%) were seized, 55% of which came from the Antilles and Guyana. "We must prevent this white tsunami from reaching our shores," said Gabriel Attal.
Seizure of "historic" cocaine in the port of Le Havre
The Minister of Public Accounts, on which customs depends, announced that a "historic" cocaine seizure had been made on February 19 by his services in the port of Le Havre, with 1.9 tonnes of powder intercepted in a few days.
He said the government would be "neither angelic nor cowardly" in cracking down on drug trafficking. Finally, 1.4 tonnes of heroin (8%) and 273 kilos of synthetic drugs (21%) were seized in France in 2022.
