Author: Richard Fausset
Published on: 04/01/2025 | 00:00:00

AI Summary:
In France, Drug Traffic Spreads to New Territory: Small Towns. In the past few years, experts say, the trade in illicit drugs has become more noticeable in France’s small and medium-sized cities. Mr. Vermot showed a tour of Morlaix, pointing with pride to its marina, the City Hall balcony where Gen. Charles de Gaulle delivered a speech in July 1945. French officials nationwide are embracing proposals to crack down on traffickers. Conservative politicians have taken to blaming casual consumers for supporting a deadly industry. France’s center-right national government collapsed last month after bitter disagreements over the 2025 budget. Retailleau has said that French drug trafficking has the country on the verge of “Mexicanization”. Some experts consider the language to be exaggerated. But many acknowledge that a number of harrowing episodes far beyond the big cities are a new cause for concern. In October, a 5-year-old child was shot twice in Pacé during a drug-related car chase. In France, and in Europe generally, cocaine trafficking began to take off in the late 1980s. A European Union Drugs Agency report noted that European seizures of cocaine now exceeded those made by the United States. The spread of the drug trade to smaller towns was the inevitable result of big-city gangs seeking to expand into new markets. Mr. Vermot, the mayor of Morlaix, said harder drugs had become more prevalent there. Aurélien Cariou, 48, said he suspected the proposed drug policies were an expression of prejudice against racial minorities. Daniel Ricoul, 55, the owner of a cosmetics store in the town center, said the government needed to address delinquency with a heavier hand. Mr. Durain, the senator, is, like the mayor, a member of the Socialist Party.

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