Ukrainian driver jailed two years after 32.8 kg of cannabis found at Saint-Lary-Soulan
Tarbes criminal court sentenced a Ukrainian man on 1 October 2026 to two years in prison, a ten-year ban from France and EUR 131,605 in customs fines after officers found 32.8 kg of cannabis hidden under the front seats of his Polish-plated car at Saint-Lary-Soulan on 28 September.
On Monday 28 September 2026 at about 22:15, customs officers from the Cierp-Gaud
brigade stopped a Polish-plated Renault Talisman at a roundabout in
Saint-Lary-Soulan in the Hautes-Pyrénées.[1][2][3]The Ukrainian driver, resident
in Poland, said he was returning from Spain through the Aragnouet–Bielsa tunnel
and heading to Brive for the night.[1][2]
Officers found the floor had been altered.[1][2][3]Under non-original carpeting
they opened two metal boxes beneath the front seats holding 32 heat-sealed bags
of cannabis herb totalling 32.8 kg; customs valued the load at EUR 131,200.[1][2][3]They also seizedEUR 405 in cash, cloths soaked in white spirit to mask the smell,
two mobile phones and a laptop.[1][2][3]
At Tarbes criminal court on Thursday 1 October the man was sentenced to two years’
imprisonment with a committal warrant, a ten-year ban from French territory, customs
fines of EUR 131,200 on the drugs and EUR 405 for customs laundering, and
confiscation of the cannabis, cash and devices.[2][3]La Dépêche reported that the
court also offered conditional release with expulsion instead of serving the full
term.[1]
Photos and video
Customs photograph of cannabis hidden in modified floor compartments under the front seats of the intercepted car.Photo details
Every number and detail the sources state, with the sources that state it.
Arrested
1
Cannabis
32.8 kg
Prison
2 years
Fine
EUR 131,605
Value (official estimate)
EUR 131,200
Agency type
Customs
Cannabis
Herbal cannabis (32.8 kg)
Setting
Prison
Case stage
Sentenced
Sentence
Prison
Route
Spain → France
Sources
La Dépêche du Midiladepeche.frFRIntercepté en vallée d'Aure avec plus de 32 kilos de cannabis, soit une valeur de 131 200 €, un chauffeur ukrainien condamné à la prison ou à l'expulsion
actu.fractu.frFRArchived copyIl pensait que c'était la meilleure cachette : un conducteur traversait les Pyrénées assis sur 33 kg de drogue
Open questions the AI reported
The defendant was not named in the reports opened.
La Dépêche said the court offered conditional release with expulsion as an alternative to serving the full term; La Semaine des Pyrénées did not repeat that detail.
Actu.fr quoted a customs fine of EUR 132,000 while other accounts and the court breakdown use EUR 131,200 plus EUR 405 for customs laundering.
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.
The Fontainebleau criminal court sentenced a driver to five years in prison, including two years firm, over a fatal 2021 crash at Souppes-sur-Loing in which his 20-year-old passenger died. The court heard he had drunk alcohol and smoked cannabis and was driving at 135 km/h in a 30 km/h zone.
Anti-crime police in Passamaïnty, Mayotte, broke up a drug deal on 4 November 2026 and seized 3.334 kg of cannabis and 8,495 euros in cash from a suspected stash flat; three people were arrested. Two young men were tried in Mamoudzou on 9 November and sentenced to 30 months with 12 suspended and a 15-month suspended term.