French beach swarmed after cocaine washes up

FRENCH authorities warned yesterday about “narco-tourism” on Channel beaches after news of more than two tons of cocaine washing ashore drew dozens of beachcombers.

Villagers along the Normandy coast have described an influx of unfamiliar people in expensive cars and 4x4s who have been scouring the sand this week.

Philippe Astruc, a local prosecutor, warned the public yesterday about the risks of “narco-tourism”.

“The act of taking possession of one of these bundles and transporting it is a crime that carries a punishment of up to 10 years in prison,” he told reporters.

Furthermore, the cocaine posed a serious health risk because it was likely to be 80 to 90 per cent pure. He stressed that a young man had died in 2019 after taking cocaine that had washed up along the west of France in the previous major incident of this kind.

“The sea brings us many things, but this is obviously very unusual,” Yves Asseline, the mayor of Reville, told Le Parisien. “We’ve seen people arriving in 4x4s, brand new cars or with quad bikes on the beach, sometimes at dawn with head torches.” Armed police were patrolling the beaches regularly.