A 44-year-old man from Menton has been sentenced to two years in prison by Monaco’s criminal court after being caught driving under the influence of drugs and found in possession of cannabis resin intended for delivery to a prison in Nice…
The defendant, who appeared without legal representation, was stopped by police on Saturday 24 January during an afternoon check in Monaco. Tests confirmed the presence of cocaine and cannabis in his system, and officers also noted that his vehicle was uninsured. A further search uncovered more than 70 grams of cannabis resin concealed beneath a seat, wrapped in a manner that investigators said was designed to avoid detection.
As reported by Monaco Matin, the man was already known to the courts. In February 2025, he had been convicted for drug-impaired driving and received a suspended prison sentence along with a court-ordered treatment programme. That conviction placed him in a situation of legal recidivism, meaning the suspended sentence was automatically revoked once the new offences were established.
During the hearing, the prosecution argued that the quantity of drugs and the method of packaging pointed to involvement in drug trafficking rather than simple personal use. The court was told that the cannabis was intended to be smuggled into the Nice prison.
In an emotional appeal, the defendant asked for leniency, citing his responsibility for elderly parents and insisting he had never sold drugs. The judges were unconvinced, ruling that probation was no longer an option under Monegasque law.
The court imposed an 18-month prison sentence for the new offences, revoked the earlier suspended sentence, ordered the confiscation of the vehicle and drugs, issued a fine for the lack of insurance, and banned the man from entering Monaco for five years, bringing his total time in custody to two years.
