Truck driver jailed 15 months over 230 kg cannabis found on A6
Customs officers stopped a Bulgarian-Belgian truck on the A6 in Côte-d'Or on 19 June 2026 and found 230 kg of cannabis herb hidden in seven sports bags. The driver, who said he took the job to clear a gambling debt, was jailed for 15 months with a five-year entry ban and a one-million-euro customs fine.
On 19 June 2026 officers of the Dijon inland surveillance brigade stopped a road
combination with a Bulgarian-registered tractor and a Belgian-registered trailer
travelling south to north on the A6 motorway.[1]The driver first denied
knowing drugs were in the vehicle, then admitted during the proceedings that he
had accepted the illicit transport to clear a large gambling debt.[1]At his
immediate trial before the Dijon judicial court he said he had agreed to carry
the illicit goods without knowing the exact quantity.[1]
Inspecting the load, officers found seven black sports bags holding a total of
230 kg of cannabis herb hidden in an empty space at the back of the load.[1]France 3 likewise describes a Bulgarian-Belgian truck intercepted on 19 June
carrying more than 230 kg of cannabis herb concealed in the trailer.[2]The
court sentenced him to 15 months’ imprisonment with continued detention, a
five-year ban from French territory and a one-million-euro customs fine, and
ordered the truck combination and its freight returned to their owners.[1]ICI
Bourgogne identifies the driver as a man from eastern Europe tried at the Dijon
judicial court for the 19 June A6 transport.[3]
Dijon-Actualités says the intervention took 230 kilos of cannabis herb off the
illicit market.[4]French Customs presents the seizure as further evidence of
its commitment against drug trafficking, saying drug trafficking feeds criminal
networks and seriously harms security and public health.[1]
Photos and video
French Customs handout photo of the 230 kg cannabis seizure published with the A6 interception report. Photo: Douane françaisePhoto details
Police in Mende arrested two men on 13 November 2026 and both were sentenced the same day in a drug case involving cannabis resin, cocaine and ketamine. A 45-year-old stash-keeper received 14 months with five suspended plus a 1,000-euro fine, and a 20-year-old received six months for repeat drug use.
Customs at the Le Boulou toll on the A9 seized 30 kilograms of cannabis from a Spanish-registered car in the night of 8 November 2026, on the Spain-to-France carriageway. The driver, tried in a plea-bargaining hearing, was sentenced by the Perpignan court on 10 November 2026 to one year in prison, a five-year ban from France and a 52,000 euro customs fine.
A 28-year-old driver tested positive for cannabis after rear-ending a car and injuring its driver at Percy-en-Normandie on 2 January 2026. The Coutances court sentenced him on 10 November 2026 to six months suspended imprisonment and cancelled his driving licence.
The criminal court in Troyes sentenced 47-year-old Ramzi Nefzaoui to 14 months in firm prison for drug trafficking and issued an arrest warrant. The case began when gendarmes stopped his Renault Laguna at Barberey-Saint-Sulpice in December 2025 and found cannabis resin, herb, cash and a scale.
