The largest police operation against the DZ Mafia, the organization that controls drug trafficking in Marseille, has concluded with the arrest of 42 suspects in 48 hours, including the three alleged "ringleaders" of the group: Amine O. (alias "Mamie"), Gabriel O. ("Gaby"), and Madhi Z. ("La Brute").
"The State does not yield to criminal organizations: it dismantles them," warned the Minister of the Interior Laurent Núñez, highlighting the "exceptional determination" and "total mobilization" of the police in the second French city. "This is the result of rigorous and patient work, under the authority of the magistrates, which fulfills the Government's objectives: to attack organized crime at its core," Núñez added.
The extensive police operation took place in Bouches-du-Rhône,Var, Vaucluse, and Gard. The detainees have been charged with "participation in a criminal association," "drug trafficking," and "aggravated money laundering."
Marseille's prosecutor, Nicolas Bessone, has scheduled a press conference for Saturday to provide all the details of the operation over three years. Bessone believes that the arrests practically mean the dismantling of the group, which is considered responsible for the war for control of drug trafficking in Marseille that claimed 49 lives in 2023, using very young hitmen and unrestrained violence reminiscent of Mexican cartels.
The latest notorious murder attributed to the DZ Mafia was the death of Mehdi Kessaci, brother of the environmental and anti-drug activist Amine Kessaci, on November 13. Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin described that cold-blooded murder as "a turning point in the awareness of the French people regarding the danger of drug trafficking."
Amine Kessaci, who lost another brother, Brahim, in another incident attributed to the "narco," has challenged the criminal organizations in Marseille by running on the lists of Printemps Marseillais, the coalition led by Mayor Benoît Payan running in the municipal elections on March 15.
With the "narco" as a backdrop, security has become the top concern for the people of Marseille. The candidate of the National Rally, Franck Allisio, has a strong chance of winning the second French city for the far-right, visited this week by its president Jordan Bardella: "If Marseille falls into our hands, it will be an earthquake for the country."