Traveller from France held at Monastir airport with 22 kg of cannabis
Customs at Monastir airport seized 22 kg of cannabis hidden in chocolate boxes and coffee packets from a 35-year-old Tunisian arriving from France, who was arrested along with an accomplice in Tunisia; two further suspects are wanted. The case was announced by the spokesperson for the Monastir and Mahdia courts on 13 April 2023.
Customs officers at Monastir airport arrested a 35-year-old Tunisian man who had
arrived from France and had been living there since 2012.[1]Officers seized22 kilograms of cannabis from the traveller, which he had hidden in chocolate
boxes and coffee packets.[1]A second suspect living in Tunisia, described as
the traveller’s accomplice, was also arrested.[1]Two further suspects were
identified and are wanted under search warrants.[1]
Farid Ben Jha, spokesperson for the Monastir and Mahdia courts, announced the
case in a statement to the media on Thursday 13 April 2023.[1]During
questioning, the detained traveller said he had obtained the 22 kilograms
through another man who also lives in France.[1]He said that man had asked
him to carry the drugs into Tunisia and hand them to a third suspect who lives
in Monastir.[1]The seizure points to cannabis being smuggled by air from
France into Tunisia, concealed in ordinary food packaging.[1]
Case data
Every number and detail the sources state, with the sources that state it.
Arrested
2
Cannabis
22 kg
Agency
Tunisian Customs
Agency type
Customs
Activity
Smuggling
Setting
Airport
Case stage
Under investigation
Region
Monastir
Route
France → Tunisia
Date
Publication date
Sources
Kapitaliskapitalis.comFRAéroport de Monastir : Un voyageur en provenance de France arrêté avec 22 Kg de cannabis - Kapitalis
Open questions the AI reported
The article gives the announcement and publication date of 13 April 2023 but no separate date for the arrest and seizure, so that date stands in for the event.
The report says cannabis without specifying whether it was herb, resin or another form.
No names, charges or court outcome were reported for the two arrested suspects.
It is not reported where or when the accomplice living in Tunisia was arrested.
Whether the two wanted suspects were later found was not reported.
Tunisia's customs administration said customs guard units seized more than 153 kg of cannabis at border crossings and inside the country in the first nine months of 2026, alongside more than 101 kg of cocaine and 18.6 million narcotic tablets. Spokesman Colonel Chokri Jabri said customs opened more than 11,000 cases in the period involving goods worth over 190 million dinars.
Security units in Sousse Sud, Tunisia, seized 30 slabs of cannabis resin, known as zatla, on the evening of 31 October 2026 and seized a car. Radio Marina reported that a suspect was arrested and detained on the public prosecutor's authorisation, while the search for other members of the network continued.
Tunisia's defence minister said the armed forces seized 516 kg of cannabis between September 2025 and September 2026 during border-security and anti-smuggling operations. The same annual tally listed 1.4 million narcotic tablets separately from the cannabis.
Tunisia's National Guard seized 110 slabs of cannabis resin, known as zatla, and 338 pieces of cannabis across the country during September 2026. Its general directorate said in a video that the month's anti-drug operations also led to the detention of 1,515 people.
