French drug baron transferred to new supermax prison
Amra made headlines when he escaped in May 2024 at a road toll from a prison van following an attack by suspected accomplices in which two prison guards were killed.
After a months-long manhunt he was caught in Romania and extradited to France.
He is among the first convicted drugs criminals to be taken to Vendin-le-Vieil, in northern France, as part of a government campaign against the drugs trade. It is one of two brand new high-security prisons.
Justice Minister Gerald Darmanin, who announced the transfer on X, has said he wants to lock up 200 of France's biggest drug traffickers in the two top-security prisons in a bid to crack down on networks that operate from within jails.
The main purpose of the supermax prisons is to prevent drug barons from continuing operations
© Michel Euler / POOL/AFP
In October, a high-security prison wing is to open in the northwestern town of Conde-sur-Sarthe.
As part of the new regime, mobile phone signals will be jammed and prisoners will undergo mandatory searches after every contact with the outside world.
At the Vendin-le-Vieil jail, the exercise yard has been concreted over to prevent objects from being hidden and an airport-style body scanner installed.
Grating has been added to the bars on the cells and hatches installed on all doors so prisoners can be handcuffed before they leave their cells.
A glass screen now prevents physical contact between inmates and visitors.
At the time of the deadly ambush, Amra already had a long history of convictions for violent crimes that started when he was 15.
Amra was suspected of ordering hits from prison, including in the months leading up to his breakout.
© 2025 AFP
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