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CRIME

French cops find 21kg of coke in ‘tourist’ suitcase

A tourist at Nice airport got quite a fright this week when police found 21 kilos of cocaine stowed away in a suitcase labelled with his name.

Published: 3 April 2015 15:05 CEST
French cops find 21kg of coke in 'tourist' suitcase
The smugglers had checked in a suitcase falsely labelled with the tourist's name. Photo of Nice airport: Shutterstock

French customs on Friday announced that they had seized 21 kilos of cocaine from a suitcase at Nice Airport, southern France, France Info reported.

The drug stash, which was found in 18 packets, was placed in a suitcase belonging to a tourist travelling from the Dominican Republic.

However when questioned about the hoard the man was baffled and further investigations showed that the drugs had been placed in a suitcase fraudulently labelled with the tourist’s name.

The stash has an estimated street value of €1.3 million.

Last year French customs seized a total of six tonnes of cocaine.

One part of this came after a surgeon found a whopping 600g of cocaine inside a man’s stomach after he had complained of chronic stomach pains.

The man later admitted to ingesting the drugs on a recent trip to South America, with intent to smuggle it into France.  

Last September two men were jailed after they allegedly used an official Vatican vehicle to try to smuggle several kilos of cocaine and cannabis through France. 
 

CRIME

French parliament to investigate sexual abuse in cinema

The French parliament on Thursday agreed to create a commission of inquiry to investigate sexual and gender-based violence in cinema and other cultural sectors after several recent allegations.

Published: 2 May 2024 12:25 CEST
French parliament to investigate sexual abuse in cinema

The Assemblée nationale unanimously agreed to set up the commission demanded by actor Judith Godreche in a speech to the upper house, the Senate, in February.

The 52-year-old actor and director has become a key figure in France’s MeToo movement since accusing directors Benoit Jacquot and Jacques Doillon of sexually assaulting her when she was a teenager. Both have denied the allegations.

All 52 lawmakers present for the vote on Thursday approved the creation of the commission, watched by Godreche, who was present in the public gallery in the chamber.

“It’s time to stop laying out the red carpet for abusers,” said Greens lawmaker Francesca Pasquini.

The new commission is to look into “the condition of minors in the various sectors of cinema, television, theatre, fashion and advertising”, as well as that of adults working in them, it said.

On the basis of Godreche’s proposal, a parliamentary commission on culture decided to extend the scope of the inquiry to also include other cultural sectors.

It is to “identify the mechanisms and failings that allow these potential abuses and violences”, “establish responsibilities” and make recommendations.

The parliament vote comes a day after actor Isild Le Besco, 41, said in an autobiography she was also raped by Jacquot during a relationship that started when she was 16, but was not ready to press charges.

Godreche, by contrast, has filed a legal complaint against the prominent arthouse director, over alleged abuse that occurred during a relationship that began when she was 14 and he was 25 years her senior.

She has also formally accused Doillon of abusing her as a 15-year-old actress in a film he directed.

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