Major Drug Bust in Algiers: Over 11,000 Psychotropic Pills Seized in Coordinated Security Operations

✍️ BY: Dr. Hana Saada

Four Arrested, Including Repeat Offenders, in Large-Scale Crackdown on Organized Narcotics Network Operating in Bir Mourad Rais and Bab Ezzouar

Algiers, Algeria | May 13th, 2025 —  In a coordinated blow to organized narcotics crime, the security services of Algiers — specifically the Police Directorate of the Administrative District of Bir Mourad Rais and the Second Division of the Judicial Police of Bab Ezzouar — have dismantled a criminal network specializing in the trafficking of psychotropic substances. The joint operations led to the arrest of four individuals, including repeat offenders, and the seizure of an astonishing 11,195 psychotropic pills, alongside significant quantities of other illicit items.

The crackdown, announced on Tuesday by the General Directorate of National Security (DGSN), stems from precise intelligence indicating that certain individuals in the neighborhoods of Bir Mourad Rais and Casablanca were actively involved in the illegal sale and distribution of psychotropic drugs. Based on these credible reports, teams from the judicial police swiftly launched extensive field investigations, successfully identifying and apprehending the suspects.

The first operation was carried out by the Fourth Degree Urban Security Service in coordination with the Judicial Police Brigade of Bir Mourad Rais. It led to the arrest of two individuals and the confiscation of 5,095 ecstasy tablets and a significant quantity of cocaine.

Simultaneously, in a second case, the Brigade for Combating Illicit Drug and Psychotropic Substance Trafficking under the Second Judicial Police District apprehended two more suspects, seizing an additional 6,100 psychotropic tablets.

Altogether, the sweeping operations led to the arrest of four suspects and the confiscation of:

• 11,195 psychotropic tablets

• 129.81 grams of ecstasy

• 258 grams of additional psychotropic substances

• 40.15 grams of cocaine

• 3,912 cartridges of foreign-made cigarettes

• A cache of prohibited bladed weapons

• 26 laser-guided orientation devices

• A sum of 5.5 million Algerian dinars and 40,000 centimes (believed to be proceeds from the illegal trade)

• An undisclosed quantity of foreign currency

The scope of the seizures and the nature of the items recovered point clearly to a well-structured and dangerous criminal network, fully entrenched in organized drug trafficking and black-market operations. The strategic coordination between different security units ensured the timely neutralization of this threat before it could further endanger the public.

Following the completion of legal procedures, all suspects have been formally presented before the competent regional prosecutor’s office on charges related to the possession, storage, transportation, and trafficking of psychotropic substances, committed within the framework of an organized criminal network.

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