3 people held for questioning last week as part of an investigation on arms trafficking by organised gangs between the north of France and Belgium, have been charged and jailed, according to a court source on Monday. One of the 3 people questioned for 4 days by Lille police investigators is Claude Hermant, a well-known figure of the Northern France identity movement, with links to the far-right, according to the source who did not go into the details of the charges.
Previously, Lille prosecutor’s office had listed “the illegal practice by an organised gang of the functions of middlemen in producing and selling military equipment, arms or munitions” as possible grounds for an indictment, as well as “conspiracy to prepare crimes and misdemeanours punishable with 10 years’ imprisonment.”
A judicial inquiry was opened at the Lille High Court on May 7th, 2014, and the investigating judge asked Lille police to investigate.
On January 20th, 2015, a search was carried out in a house in Comines (Belgium), approximately 15kms from Lille, with an international warrant dated December 18th, 2014, signed by French authorities.
The search was carried out by Belgian police accompanied by their French colleagues.
(Source: Belga)
