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BielIn 66 trips, he carries 34 kilos of heroin
An Eritrean smuggler conveyed drugs by car, sometimes with his son. Sentenced to seven and a half years in prison, he risks deportation.
The trafficker appeared last week in Biel before the Bernese Jura – Seeland Regional Court.
lematin.ch/Vincent Donzé
Thirty-four kilos of heroin for a single man: “Le Journal du Jura” designated it as “a drug hub in its own right”. Last Friday, this 29-year-old Eritrean transporter was sentenced by the Bernese Jura-Seeland Regional Court to seven and a half years’ imprisonment for transporting 34 kilos of cut heroin, a sentence which will theoretically be punctuated by the expulsion of this father of five children.
The drug courier delivered his goods between Biel and Bern, in 500 gram bags. His ride lasted ten months, which makes him guilty of offenses in organized gang and by profession to the law on narcotics, as well as money laundering.
8.2 kg of pure heroin
From summer 2019 to spring 2020, this horticulturist made 66 trips by car, sometimes with his young son, recruiting acquaintances in order to have an apartment. 34 kilos of cut heroin were transported. But to establish the verdict, the judges retained 8.2 kg of pure heroin.
A full confession and sincere regret reduced an original ten-year sentence by a quarter. “Le Journal du Jura” notes that during the first two interrogations, the smuggler claimed to have only delivered pizzas. His wife having incriminated him, he told the truth at the third interrogation. Last Tuesday, the defendant claimed to have been unaware of what the bags transported contained.
Taken for a traitor
The five judges responsible for establishing the length of the sentence were sensitive to the harassment suffered in prison by the defendant, taken for a traitor by other prisoners. The assaults and threats suffered necessitated several transfers from one prison to another.
The convict is the father of five children born of two relationships, but the court did not see in his situation a case of hardship. If his wife and children do not wish to follow him to Eritrea, it will be up to him to maintain a family life through calls, messages and visits, as well as through social networks.
The horticulturist has already served three years in prison in preventive detention. Will he be deported once his sentence is over? Currently, Eritrean citizens are not returned to their country, due to an unstable political situation.