Drug trafficking in Charente-Maritime: a “family affair” before the La Rochelle court

A couple and a friend, linked by pétanque, were sentenced on Tuesday, July 29 in La Rochelle for drug trafficking, money laundering and illegal tobacco sales.

The La Rochelle Criminal Court delivered its verdict on Tuesday, July 29, against three defendants residing in La Tremblade, who were involved in a drug trafficking and fraudulent tobacco sales network. Stéphane Garnier and Aurélie Braché appeared in the courtroom surrounded by a police escort. The third defendant, Stéphane Garnier's wife, appeared free, supported by her family in the courtroom.

Stéphane Garnier, 51, was sentenced to five years in prison, two and a half of which were suspended, for drug trafficking and possession for the purpose of selling tobacco. Aurélie Braché was sentenced to three years in prison, one of which was suspended, for drug trafficking, laundering proceeds from this trafficking through sports betting, and possession for the purpose of selling tobacco. Finally, Isabelle Garnier was sentenced to six months suspended for fraudulent sale of tobacco.

The story that links the three people who appeared before the La Rochelle court began about ten years ago. The three adults, a couple in their fifties and a woman now 39, became friends playing pétanque. "Aurélie is like my daughter," he explains.

With three previous convictions on his criminal record, including a 2023 conviction for drug trafficking, Stéphane Garnier was already known to the justice system. He was serving a four-year prison sentence at the time of his arrest in June 2025. He had been placed under an electronic tag for the last two years of his sentence, as a reward for his conduct in custody. This leniency was recalled by the presiding judge but called into question by the defendant's rapid reoffending. He admitted to having resumed trafficking shortly after his release, citing financial difficulties. He admitted to having asked Aurélie Braché for cocaine to supply a former client.

The police found four cartons of cigarettes during a search of the couple's home. These cartons, according to the less-involved defendant, dated back to the case for which her husband was imprisoned in 2023.

Aurélie Braché had previously been convicted of traffic offenses. She says she began smuggling cigarettes and trafficking drugs for financial reasons. The thirty-year-old admitted to all the charges against her. Long suspected of following Stéphane Garnier's orders, she denies any influence from the couple: "I did it all on my own. I found my suppliers through word of mouth," she claimed in court.

As additional penalties, the judges imposed a two-year ban on contact between the couple and their friend, a decision that caused tears.