DUBLIN: An Irishman appeared in a French court charged in connection with the seizure of more than €600,000 worth of cocaine believed to be destined for Jersey.
The 57-year-old appeared before a French magistrate in connection with a shipment of 4kg of cocaine seized last weekend.
The seizure followed a joint operation between Jersey Customs and the anti-narcotics unit of the French Gendarmerie.
The man is understood to have been living in the UK for some time but was originally from the south Munster area.
He was detained in the Granville area of France. French authorities believe the shipment was destined for Jersey. In a follow-up operation, a number of addresses on Jersey were raided. Police indicated that further arrests may yet be made. The seizure is believed to have followed a lengthy intelligence and surveillance operation. Tests are now underway to determine the purity and the origin of the drugs involved.
The Director of Jersey Law Enforcement, Mark Cockerham, said it was a significant operational success for both the Jersey and French authorities. “The quantity of cocaine seized is significant and had it been imported and distributed in Jersey this would have led to a large supply being available at user level,” he said.
“In reality this cocaine would most likely be cut down again several times achieving higher and higher profits for those at each level of the supply chain.”
“Whilst we have seen a marked increase in the seizures of New Psychoactive Substances (NPS) this year, this demonstrates that there is still a demand for Class A drugs in Jersey and we are pleased to have prevented this consignment from being imported into our Island.”
