“We seize drugs every day in Toulouse” confirms Toulouse prosecutor Samuel Vuelta Simon
Samuel Vuelta Simon is the new public prosecutor of Toulouse. After 18 months like deputy head of the Central Office for the Suppression of Drug Trafficking, he took the head of the public prosecutor’s office in the pink city a month ago. The public prosecutor who mentioned the Jubular case, the fight against violence against women, the fight against drug trafficking and the links between justice and litigants.
You were one of the bosses of the fight against drugs in France within the anti-narcotics office. Can we first compare to our city of Toulouse, to that of Marseille in terms of drug trafficking?
Toulouse is just a slightly different manifestation from Marseille or what is happening in France in terms of drug trafficking. We know here in Toulouse as in Marseille, but also as in Lyon, Paris, the same phenomena linked to narcotics. There is a huge amount of traffic that impacts the city and the department, settling of scores that are linked to this traffic. There are also disturbances and offenses related to this trafficking.
There was a large network dismantled last June, in the Izards district. What are the other Toulouse districts the most affected by this trafficking?
There is no region or parts of a city, of a metropolis that escape trafficking. Simply, the trafficking will manifest itself in different ways, as in the Izards. Elsewhere, we will rather find a demonstration in the form of apparent trafficking through drug outlets. This is the case in the hypercentre for example.
Do you talk about drugs every day in Toulouse?
We seize drugs every day in Toulouse. Drugs arriving in Toulouse. Security forces police, gendarmerie, customs are very active in the area and try to prevent products from arriving. But above all, what is most important is to carry out investigations to identify the perpetrators, the traffickers and the power to arrest them and bring them to court.
By what means, precisely? And how are you going to step up the fight against this trafficking? Mr. prosecutor?
By any means the law offers, of course. Beyond therefore by the means of the judicial police, the mission of the judicial police and investigations. Gather evidence of the involvement of such or such person in trafficking and ensure that they are judged and that they must be subjected to the kind of criminal laws.
Samuel Vuelta Simon, you are also the one who communicates on the big legal and media cases in progress. Like the disappearance of Delphine Jubular in the Tarn. Is her husband in pre-trial detention?
I will not answer that question since there is in France the beautiful principle resulting from of the presumption of innocence. How does the public prosecutor intervene? It is true that the public prosecutor is one of the rare agents dependent on the State to be able to lift the secrecy of the instruction and the investigation which is imposed on him. But he cannot do it under very strict conditions. When fake news spreads and when it is of interest to everyone. And so there, the prosecutor has this freedom to communicate. Dominique Alzeari at the end of last summer, communicating at length on this court case.
Cédric Jublar will be heard on October 15. Can we imagine that you will speak after this hearing?
Absolutely not. Unless one of these two circumstances were met? The investigating judges who lead the case lead it completely. Therefore, they will carry out the necessary investigative acts, including hearings, re-enactments or various research. The investigating court must do this work with complete serenity. So there is no question for the public prosecutor to intervene all the time to comment, to clarify such and such has chosen.
One of your priorities is also to fight against violence against women. A family visibly died under the blows of her husband, a few days ago, in the Mirail district. Comment on can prevent these tragedies?
We can prevent, as we already do by being particularly attentive and particularly precise on all weak signals of intra-family and marital violence. Unfortunately, in the majority of cases, it is the woman who is the victim. It is therefore necessary each time that all the services are fully mobilized. From the doctor who receives the victim to the police services who will receive the complaint to the prosecution, of course, and also to the court. All of them must put in place all the necessary measures. Consequent since the law has certain additional things for us. Each time, it is necessary to set in motion all this device. Afterwards, we must also prevent. But unfortunately, we cannot prevent everything.
On the functioning of justice, you say you want modern, accessible and efficient justice. This is not the case today ?
It’s the case. But you know, there is always room for improvement, me including everyone. So, this is the displayed corn. It’s the one I’ve been chasing for 30 years now. We are never at 100%. So each time you have to be much more immediate, you have to take many more initiatives and being the creator of devices.