French Couple Sentenced For The Resale Of Narcotics

A couple was sentenced in Bethune, France for ordering drugs from the dark web and selling them to local customers.

According to the French media outlet lavoixdunord.fr, the trial resulted in tears and sadness on one side, while a big relief on the other side. Since the wife was sentenced to probation, her family was relieved, however, the husband was imprisoned by the court.

The trial started with the judge declaring that the court had found both defendant guilty of the crimes they had been accused of. The prosecution charged the couple, originally from Anzin, France, with the importation, possession, consumption, and unauthorized transfer of drugs. According to the court documents, the couple ordered the illicit substances from the dark web between the period of March 2015 and March 2017. During that time, law enforcement authorities reported that the defendants ordered approximately 30 parcels (including narcotics) from the Netherlands. The couple purchased various drugs, however, the prosecution only charged them for the ones that they bought in significant quantities. The prosecution claimed that these two substances were cannabis and amphetamine. According to the court documents, the defendants resold part of the drugs for a profit. However, the prosecution claimed that the husband was the main suspect in the case. Their business went well until the customs authorities in Roissy intercepted on the parcels in November 2016.

“It’s your account that was used for the purchases. Deliveries were made with your car and the plantation was found at your place. Why did you accept all this?” the judge asked the woman suspecting that she allowed her husband to use her car and darknet profile for the drug operation. The wife said that she did all of that since she loved her husband. The lawyer of the woman claimed that when the customs called the wife investigating about the origins of the package, she “stopped with everything”. The attorney added that his client had “understood that it was a serious case” and showed full cooperation with law enforcement authorities.

The prosecution was much more critical with the husband. During the court hearings, the man claimed that he did not sell any of the drugs for profit. However, during the home search of the defendant, investigators found 1,240 euros of cash in a safe. Law enforcement authorities suspected that the funds originated from the drug business.

“You are a repeat offender and in addition, you have changed your story to several versions,” the prosecutor said during the court trial. The husband’s lawyer said that his client is “an immature person and an influential victim of the bad relations of his city”.

The judge sentenced the husband to 30 months in prison, from which six months are suspended, and with two years of probation. The woman, on the other hand, was sentenced to 12 months of probation.