Toulouse: A Brazilian woman who traveled with 1.7 kg of cocaine sentenced to 3 years in prison
Customs officers at Toulouse-Blagnac airport intercepted a traveler with a suitcase loaded with cocaine at the end of December. This mother was heavily sentenced by the Toulouse Criminal Court.
Ready to do anything to provide for her children, a woman crossed the Atlantic Ocean with cocaine in her suitcases. Only this Brazilian was intercepted by customs officers at Toulouse-Blagnac airport before Christmas. While checking her luggage, customs officers discovered 1.7 kg of cocaine concealed under her cosmetics. According to her hearings, she was to give this package to a man who had planned to contact her once she arrived in Toulouse. After his customs detention, and his explanations before the police officers of the territorial direction of the judicial police, this mule was tried by the criminal court of Toulouse, in immediate comparison.
In front of her judges, the defendant tries to explain herself: “I posted an ad on Facebook because I was looking for a job. A man then contacted me to offer me to carry a briefcase that I should not open under any circumstances for the equivalent of 200 euros. I swear I didn’t know what was in it. »
“Madam, there is Fedex if you want to send parcels! Doesn’t it strike you as odd that you get paid for travel and hotel just to carry something? », retorts the president, far from being convinced by her explanations.
“To feed my children”
“I thought it was weird but I did it to feed my children. I didn’t have enough to live on, so I didn’t think too much. I wanted to retract at the last moment but the man threatened me. I regret from the bottom of my heart. I have priced for the covid test to be positive so as not to board! “, she adds, in tears.
“His explanations are totally fanciful! She couldn’t ignore that the content was illegal. We are talking about a 93% pure cocaine destined to flood the French market. There are always legal ways to earn a living. The sanction must be commensurate with the quantity”, argument of the public prosecutor. She requires three years in prison, including eighteen months suspended with a warrant of deposit and a ban on French territory for a period of ten years.
In defense, Me Virginie Chiorozas tries to clarify the role of her client. “We are faced with a person who lives in extreme precariousness, who is awash in debt. It is an international traffic which exceeds completely. »
After deliberation, the smuggler was sentenced to three years in prison, including one year suspended and a warrant of committal. She will also have to pay a customs fine of 53,250 euros. And it is now banned from appearing on French territory for ten years.