The French navy seized more than 8.6 tonnes of drugs in the Antilles in October

The French Navy seized more than 8.6 tonnes of narcotics, mainly cocaine, during several control operations carried out between October 4 and 13 in the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean, AFP learned from the authorities on Thursday.

These seizures, carried out in coordination with several partner countries, led to the confiscation of nearly 6.9 tons of cocaine and 1.7 tons of marijuana. The largest capture led to the placement in police custody of five people in Martinique, according to a press release co-signed in particular by the prefect of this department and the Armed Forces in the Antilles. It took place on October 8 in the Atlantic Ocean, when a French military vessel stopped an unflagged fishing vessel which was “beginning a transatlantic crossing”, details the document. On board, 150 bales tested positive for cocaine were discovered, representing a weight of 5,292 kilos.

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More than three tons of drugs

At the request of the prosecution, the cargo and the five crew members were transferred to Fort-de-France. The suspects were taken into custody by investigators from the Caribbean Anti-Narcotics Office (OFAST). Two other interceptions have taken place in the Caribbean Sea in recent days, the result of bilateral cooperation. On October 4, a French frigate supported by its helicopter stopped a “go fast type fast boat sailing without a flag”, with the help of the Colombian navy. Sixteen bales of cocaine were hidden there. Then, on October 13, a Venezuelan fishing vessel was checked with 166 bales of cocaine and marijuana.

At the end of these two Caribbean operations, which totaled more than three tons of narcotics, “the crews, illicit goods and ships were handed over to the competent Colombian and Venezuelan authorities for legal action,” specifies the Ministry of the Armed Forces in the joint press release. “Congratulations to the crews and actors of these seizures, who demonstrate the professionalism and efficiency of our forces,” reacted Minister Catherine Vautrin on X, stressing that “the action of the French armies is in strict compliance with the law”.