Morocco foils drug smuggling operation of over 10 tonnes

RABAT – The police in Morocco’s economic capital city of Casablanca foiled on Wednesday a major international drug trafficking operation and seized 10 tonnes and 300 kilograms of cannabis resin (chira).

The operations carried out, in coordination with elements of the Royal Gendarmerie with territorial jurisdiction, allowed the interception at the Casablanca motorway interchange of two utility vehicles loaded with large quantities of cannabis resin, said the Directorate General of National Security (DGSN) in a statement.

The driver of the first vehicle and another person who accompanied him were arrested at the motorway interchange, while the driver of the second vehicle refused to comply, at the time when another person who was on board this same vehicle exposed the lives of police officers and road users to a dangerous threat by firing four bullets from a hunting rifle equipped with a belt loaded with cartridges.

“To neutralize this dangerous aggression coming from this suspect who was deliberately shooting at police officers and road users, an element of the Anti-Gang Brigade (BAG) was forced to use his weapon and fired four warning bullets before the fifth bullet reached the suspect,” said the statement, adding that this intervention made it possible to neutralize the danger and to arrest the person who accompanied the attacker, while the latter died.

This operation also allowed the seizure of large quantities of cannabis resin inside the two cars, with a total weight of 10 tonnes and 300 kilograms, in addition to the seizure of the hunting rifle and the cartridges used in threatening policemen and endangering their safety.

The three individuals arrested in this case were placed in police custody at the disposal of the judicial investigation which is carried out under the supervision of the competent public prosecutor's office with a view to clarifying all the ramifications of this criminal network, while the remains of the fourth suspect were was taken to the morgue for autopsy, the statement concluded.