French police raided the national anti-drugs agency (Ofast) branch in the southern French city of Marseille as part of a corruption probe, the newspaper Le Parisien reported on Wednesday evening.
The paper reported, citing sources, that the Inspectorate General of the National Police (IGPN) on April 4 raided the head office of the Ofast branch in Marseille, the leading criminal investigation department in the city responsible for tackling the largest drug networks.
The raid was part of an investigation opened by the city's public prosecutor's office following a tip-off, the paper said.
IGPN officers are investigating multiple offences, including suspected corruption in the prestigious police department, which operates in a region particularly affected by cannabis and cocaine trafficking and deadly settlements between drug gangs, according to Le Parisien.
Phones and computers were confiscated from the police unit's premises, but no arrests were made.
France's Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin is currently planning high-profile raids in numerous cities to curb drug trafficking. "Our fight against drugs and dealers is total," said the minister.
France in the summer launched a new anti-drug clean-up initiative – dubbed "Place nette" or "Tidy Place" - with the aim of eliminating the approximately 4,000 drug sales points in the country.
The situation is particularly bad in the port city of Marseille, where 49 people were killed in drugs-related violence last year. Authorities recently spoke of a massive raid with around 900 police and customs officers deployed there.