The son of a former Minister of State in Monaco has been convicted by the Principality’s criminal court on charges of possession, transport, importation, acquisition and use of cocaine…
Two men identified as his suppliers were also prosecuted, bringing to light a case that began with police investigations in 2018. According to the court, the defendant’s drug use dated back to 2017 and eventually led investigators to trace and apprehend those providing him with narcotics.
As reported by Monaco Matin, the case unfolded after information received by Public Security officers prompted surveillance and phone monitoring, culminating in the arrest of one dealer during a delivery operation. Searches later uncovered cocaine concealed inside everyday household items. The investigation established repeated transactions, with supplies sometimes delivered to Monaco and at other times collected in nearby French towns.
In court, the defendant acknowledged his addiction, describing escalating consumption at the time and linking it to professional pressure and personal difficulties. He told judges he had since undergone detox treatment and psychiatric follow-up, and that he had been drug-free for several years. The court handed him a two-month suspended prison sentence, without the conviction appearing on bulletin number two of his criminal record.
One supplier received a 12-month suspended sentence, a fine and a ban from Monaco, while a second, absent at the hearing, was sentenced to two years’ imprisonment and made subject to an arrest warrant.
Image: Sasun Bughdaryan