Paris (AP) – Anti-organization crime expert investigators have explored the possible involvement of the infamous drug cartel, Paris prosecutors said Saturday.
The so-called DZ mafia is suspected to be one of the main Narco human trafficking networks working in the southern French port city of Marseille, which is a hub for drug trade and gangsters associated with it with a long history.
Paris Attorney Laure Beccuau said in a press conference on Saturday that an alleged organizer in the prison attack last month claimed to have ties to the DZ mafia. She said police investigators will study the “real or so-called impact of the DZ mafia” violence.
Prosecutors said gunfire and arson targeted several prisons, including attacks on prison workers' homes and prison service schools in the Paris region and elsewhere.
The letters of the “DDPF” were painted on certain targets, believed to represent “destens des Abourniers français”, which translates as “a defense of French prisoners.”
Paris prosecutors said 21 people detained for suspected people involved in the violence have been initially charged for attempted murder and other suspected crimes.
French authorities have stepped up policing on drug trafficking in recent months, fearing the use of cocaine in France and violence related to trafficking and other drugs.
