France to seize drug users’ phones in crackdown on prison attacks

France to seize phones from drug users and dealers

Drug dealers and users caught by police can expect to have their mobile phones seized if their devices were used in the crime, a French minister says.

French Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin has announced that the confiscation of mobile phones of drug users will be extended to the whole country. The measure has already been introduced on a trial basis by the Bayonne prosecutor's office in southwestern France.

The Minister of Justice wants to generalize a measure already put in place by the Bayonne prosecutor which consists of seizing the mobile phones of drug users.

The Keeper of Seals has announced the generalization of this practice, which he considers "sometimes more dissuasive than a prosecution".

France to seize drug users’ phones in crackdown on prison attacks

France will start seizing drug users’ phones across the country as part of a crackdown on gangs blamed for a wave of prison attacks. The move expands a trial in Bayonne aimed at stopping deals made through encrypted messaging apps.

This measure announced by Jérôme Bourrier can be implemented "as soon as it is established in procedure that this mobile phone has been used in the relationship between the user and his seller".