• Since 2010, the Agency for the Management and Recovery of Seized and Confiscated Assets (Agrasc) has been tracking the dirty money of criminals and traffickers.

  • Seized or confiscated property can be sold at auction, with the money then returning to state coffers.

  • After Lyon and Marseille, two new regional branches of Agrasc have just opened at the beginning of the month in Rennes and Lille.

A Lamborghini Huracan Spyder, a Tesla Model S, a Mercedes S-Class Coupé… Provided you had a little money, there was a way to have fun during the flash sale which ended this Wednesday morning on the Domain Auctions website.

All these cars were recently seized in the Rennes region and belong to offenders currently indicted in various cases.

After a few days of bidding, their sale brought in 338,000 euros, a sum which will be kept until the court decision.

If the defendant is convicted, the money will go directly into state coffers.

"In case of release, we will return the value of the seized property", underlines Nicolas Bessone, director general of the Agency for the management and recovery of seized and confiscated assets (Agrasc).

Created in 2010, this agency, placed under the dual supervision of the Ministries of Justice and Budget, is "the armed wing of the State to seek redress from offenders by hitting them in the wallet", according to Minister of Justice Eric Dupond-Moretti.

In a little over ten years of existence, Agrasc, whose motto is "No one should profit from his crime", has also built up a nice jackpot thanks to crooks, traffickers and other pimps.

His account at the deposit and consignment fund thus shows a balance of 1.5 billion euros.

Villas, yachts, cryptocurrencies or herd of cattle

Each year, its agents attack the assets of offenders by seizing or confiscating their ill-gotten assets in the course of investigations.

These can be luxury items such as jewelry or large cars, but also villas, yachts, life insurance or cryptocurrencies.

“We even seized a herd of cattle once,” smiles Frédéric Benet-Chambellan, chairman of the board of directors.

The challenge is of course financial by hitting where it hurts.

But the action of Agrasc also aims to prevent the commission of other offences.

“Dirty money makes it possible to finance a large number of crimes and misdemeanors, from corruption to terrorism”, specifies Nicolas Bessone.

In some cases, seized or confiscated property is sold at auction.

During a big sale organized on November 5 for the 10th anniversary of the agency, 2.98 million euros were collected.

Other property that has belonged to offenders is also made available to law enforcement, such as vehicles or high-tech equipment, or to public interest associations.

In Guadeloupe, the villa of a crook should soon host an association offering courses of responsibility for violent husbands.

Some buildings confiscated from slum landlords or pimps are also intended to be rehabilitated to accommodate social housing.

Four regional branches

Steered from Paris since its creation, Agrasc is now being deployed in the regions.

Last year, two regional branches were created in Lyon and Marseille.

"In a few months, 28 million euros have already been recovered," said Nicolas Bessone.

To increase the pressure on offenders and improve the efficiency of investigative and judicial services, two new branches opened at the beginning of the month in Rennes and Lille and two others should follow next year in Bordeaux and Nancy.

Company

Cars, computers, drones… When the gendarmes equip themselves with drug traffickers

The Martinican villa of a crook has been sold at auction

  • Company

  • Delinquency

  • Crime

  • Drug traffic

  • Money

  • Capture

  • reindeer

  • Brittany