French mayor had 70kg of cannabis at home – media

A local politician was arrested during an anti-narcotics raid on Sunday

French police arrested Avallon Mayor Jamilah Habsaoui as part of a wide drug bust on Sunday. She was apprehended after 70 kilograms of cannabis were found at her house, AFP and BFM TV reported, citing police sources.

Avallon is a city of 6,000 people located in the central-eastern Bourgogne-Franche-Comte region. Habsaoui has been the mayor since 2021 and is also a regional councilor.

The politician’s home was raided as part of a preliminary investigation into drug trafficking.

The newspaper L’Yonne republicaine reported that the house was acquired by the mayor three years ago and that she does not reside there. The newspaper added that the Avallon city hall was also searched.

A total of seven people were detained, including the two of Habsaoui’s brothers, Hugues de Phily, public prosecutor in Auxerre, told AFP. He said that 983 grams of cocaine, €7,000 ($7,600) in cash, and around 20 gold bars were seized in several locations.

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The raid was part of a wider anti-narcotics campaign dubbed ‘Place nette XXL’ that was launched earlier this year. Some 473 raids have been carried out, leading to the arrest of over 7,000 suspects and the confiscation of 3.6 tons of drugs, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin wrote on X (formerly Twitter) on Sunday.