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Brott i Marseille
Marseille is situated on the southern coast of France, 110 miles west of the famed and glittering Riviera. It is the oldest French city, dating back to 600BC, and is home to approximately 850,000 residents, the second largest city in France.
We recommend you don’t go near this dangerous and corrupted city.
It is a city of contrasts, with the richer, mostly white areas south of the city center and the poorer northern districts from the center of the city, where 40% of people live below the poverty line. Many call Marseille the poorest city in France. Those with money live in the suburbs, whilst the northern districts are cramped with high rise blocks (sometimes referred to as ghettos) mostly occupied by immigrants and disenfranchised youth.
Brottsligheten är utbredd i staden, med höga mordfrekvenser och narkotikarelaterade brott, och det blir bara värre: Marseille upplever växande sociala problem. Områden i de norra distrikten har blivit "no-go"-områden för polisen och lokalbefolkningen kör sina egna vägspärrar för att övervaka vem som kommer in och dela ut sin egen form av disciplin och bestraffning. Gängkrigföring är normen och drogkartellerna verkar relativt ostraffat och bär öppet kalasjnikovs, som har blivit det valda vapnet.
As Marseille is a large port city, this has meant that it has become a magnet for immigration. There is no way of knowing how many Arabs/Muslims live in any individual city, because registration by religion or ethnic origin is forbidden by law, however the latest research in Marseille suggests that around one-third of ‘Marseilles’ are now Muslim. Back in 2006, it was reported that 70,000 city residents were considered to be of Maghrebian origin, mostly Algerian. The second largest group in Marseille in terms of single nationalities were from the Comoros, amounting to some 45,000 people. This has increased tremendously as migrants flee the troubles of their African and Middle Eastern countries. This group does not assimilate well with native Marseilles.
Brottsfrekvensen är över 5 gånger högre än någon annan stad i Frankrike. The murder rate is especially high, as young men are routinely trapped and burned alive. This happens so often that it even has a name: it’s called a ‘Marseille barbecue’, and it’s part of gang or drug-related crimes.
Rån är våldsamma och involverar vanligtvis många människor som bär vapen. Att närma sig på skotrar är en vanlig taktik. Eftersom ungdomsarbetslösheten rapporteras vara så hög som 40 % är det vanliga med rån och misshandel för att få tag i lättsålda värdesaker.
Som om allt detta inte var illa nog har Marseille också ett fortsatt krig med den korsikanska separatistgruppen FLNC, och de har utfört bombattentat mot många hotell i Marseille.
If you must visit Marseille, use common sense and don’t put yourself at risk by entering areas known for high crime rates (like the third arrondissement –the poorest area in France– where over 50% live beneath the poverty line). Don’t travel alone at night. If you have an air of confidence about you and you look at home with your surroundings, you are less likely to be attacked.
Kolla in vår experttips om hur du undviker brott på franska rivieran and see our Marseille-specific tips below.
Bakom brottet som gav Marseille sitt rykte om narkotikahandel
Marseille har en lång historia av kriminell verksamhet som involverar maffian, men det finns särskilt ett brott som gav denna stad sitt rykte som en narkotikahandelshuvudstad: "French Connection". Det är en fantastisk historia som börjar med stulna nazistiska pengar och slutar med korruption i 1970-talets New York.
In the 1930s, Corsican mafia leader Paul Carbone realized that there was money to be made on the streets of America by selling heroin. He began transporting poppy seeds from Turkey to France – via Marseille – and then on towards Canada and, eventually, the US. This route (soon dubbed the ‘French Connection’) used Marseille as a thoroughfare because it was one of the busiest ports in the Mediterranean, meaning shipments were more difficult to detect.
A man called Auguste Ricord worked with Carbone to finance the operation. It is believed that the money Ricord provided was obtained during his time with the French Gestapo, a branch of the Nazi party, in the years that made up World War II. US authorities were aware of the French Connection as early as 1937, having discovered a number of Marseille-based labs that were turning morphine paste into heroine. However, the CIA allegedly protected the Korsikanskt gäng på grund av den hjälp de gav för att förhindra franska kommunister från att ta kontroll över Marseilles gamla hamn i slutet av andra världskriget. Detta visade sig vara ett stort misstag för amerikanerna.
The French Connection gradually began to ship greater and greater quantities of drugs to America throughout the 1950’s and ’60s. It is estimated that, by 1960, as much as 5,000 pounds of heroin (2,300 kg) was coming onto American streets through the route every year. French authorities were allegedly reluctant to arrest one of the gang’s major ringleaders as he had been a part of the French Resistance during World War II.
Den amerikanska regeringen försökte få Turkiet att minska mängden opium som exporterades, men så småningom visste de att de var tvungna att slå ner pöbeln själva. De amerikanska myndigheterna (med hjälp från internationella allierade) slog ner människohandeln och beslagtog under hela det tidiga 1970-talet båtlaster med droger och arresterade hundratals människor. Samtidigt dödades många medlemmar av den inblandade maffian på grund av strider med andra gäng. I mitten av 70-talet spolades den franska förbindelsen ut.
French Connection tog med sig en enorm mängd droger till USA – och många New York-poliser använde ordningen för att själva bli rika. Faktum är att NYPD:s engagemang fortfarande är i centrum för en av historiensmest ökända, olösta korruptionsskandaler: in 1962, a large shipment of drugs – containing over 400 pounds of heroin and cocaine said to be valued at $73 million – was seized from the French Connection gang. In 1972 it was discovered that the drugs, which were being kept in a New York City police vault, had been replaced with flour and cornstarch and, over the ten-year period, sold on the streets of America. Four New York City police officers were implicated, one of which was later killed.
En av French Connection gangsters – så småningom utskickad i totalt 455 år för sina brott – smyger för närvarande i ett amerikanskt fängelse; Anthony Casso är kanske den enda personen i världen som någonsin kommer att veta vem som egentligen var ansvarig för att drogerna läckte ut på gatorna.
The French connection is the stuff of legends – and prime material Hollywood. In 1971, William Friedkin (who famously went on to direct ‘The Exorcist’) made a movie called ‘The French Connection’, starring Gene Hackman. But the French were already using Marseille as a notorious backdrop long before this. Films like Jacques Deray’s 'Borsalino’ (1970), starring two of France’s most popular actors at the time, showed rival gangsters and warring mafia families. Locals in Marseille had known for a long time that the city was home to nefarious mafia behavior, but it was the Oscar-winning success of ‘The French Connection’ that really brought awareness to an international audience.
Marseille’s infamy continues to this day, with Netflix’s grandiose Marseille series and Cédric Jimenez’s 2014 version of the drug bust starring Jean Dujardin, called ‘La French’. It appears as if this is one aspect of Marseille’s history that it will never shake.
2024 Update
In late March 2024, French President Emmanuel Macron initiated a multi-week crackdown on drug trafficking in Marseille, a city that has been plagued by gang violence, resulting in dozens of deaths and making life unbearable for many residents. During his unexpected visit to the southern port city, which is set to host several events for the Paris 2024 Olympics, Macron announced that more than 80 individuals had already been apprehended in the initial raids. Over the next three weeks, approximately 4,000 police officers will be deployed weekly in Marseille and its surrounding areas. The President commenced his visit with a walkabout in the northern district of La Castellane , one of the worst-affected areas, assuring residents that the operation aims to “try to destroy the networks and the traffickers.”
Joseph Downing – a senior lecturer in politics and international relations, who grew up on a London council estate and lives in Marseille, where he has studied the relationship between the cités and police – said it was impossible for Britons to grasp how awful the estates are. He says that “in terms of the disrepair of the housing stock, the absence of the state – the absence of anybody – we can’t comprehend it’s possible. The police are even scared to go there. For us, this is unthinkable. These places are literally outside the state. If you call the police as a resident, they will not come.”
En lokals perspektiv och tips
“I’m an English guy who’s been living in Marseille since July 2014 and am offering an update on the crime and safety situation from a local perspective. Myself and varje invånare jag pratar med här har förstahandserfarenhet av kriminalitet, där det vanligaste är snatteri, ficktjuv, stöld ur bil, stöld av cyklar/motorcyklar. Jag har fått en väska ryckt, jag såg tjuven ta den och jag jagade honom. Det här är första gången något liknande har hänt mig, jag är nästan femtio år gammal och har bott i några tvivelaktiga områden i storstäder i Storbritannien. Det värsta som hände var en cykel som stulits från entréhallen till några lägenheter där jag bodde .
Certain parts of Marseille are a lot more dangerous than others. The forest of CCTV cameras recently installed may have made areas like the Vieux Port and Panier safer but based on my experiences and what I’ve heard from long term residents, here are some points to bear in mind:
- Rycker stölder av smycken, speciellt halskedjor förekommer på spårvagnen och tunnelbanan. Även stölder av klockor, så om någon frågar dig tiden så vet du inte. Varför skulle de fråga dig när de nästan säkert har en mobiltelefon?
- Ficktjuvar verkar över hela staden men framför allt på tunnelbanan. St Charles station kryllar numera av säkerhetsvakter och soldater. Var mycket försiktig med människor som stöter på dig, grupper av ungdomar som sparkar en fotboll runt som råkar korsa din väg... och när den unge mannen går för att hämta bollen stöter han på dig på något sätt medan hans medbrottsling sträcker sig efter mobilen de såg tidigare på skiss i din byxficka.
- Jag använder numera olika dolda plånböcker när jag är ute och går i centrum, eftersom jag tappat räkningen på antalet stöldförsök som har gjorts. Jag har en axelväska som kan bära en smartphone, plånbok, uppsättning nycklar och som kan döljas under kläderna. Lokalbefolkningen jag känner bär aldrig en väska med sig på kvällen.
- Jag föreslår att du lämnar din snygga designerklocka, guldsmycken och smartphone bakom dig och när du är på gatan, använd en av de kostnadsfria kartorna som finns tillgängliga från turistinformationen.
- The area bordered by Allee Gambetta , Rue de la Grande Armee and la Canebiere should be avoided as should the side streets near St Charles station . There’s nothing of any interest around there in any case. One exception might be the vegetarian restaurant Grain du Sable on rue Baignoir, open lunchtimes.
- The area running from Cours Belsunce , around Rue Colbert up to Port d’Aix is extremely dangerous and notorious for snatch thefts. An ambulance crew, collecting a patient recently had their smartphones and the works phone stolen from the front of the ambulance while they were getting the patient in to the back. This was where I had a bag snatched in broad daylight. So if you’re thinking of strolling up to the Arc de Triomphe and having a picnic on the grass under the trees – don’t. This area is also the end of the motorway A7 and there are reports of motorists being robbed who’ve come off the motorway and stopped the car to check directions.
- Varje dag ser jag minst två eller tre bilar med bakrutan krossad. Tar man med sig en bil med skyltar utanför stan, framför allt utländska, är det bara en fråga om när, inte om, det blir inbrott.
- The beaches are also notorious for thefts. Plage Prophete , Catalans and Prado have free cloakrooms from June to September and you are well advised to use them.
- As a visitor, you may well end up around Cours Julien , which is a lively area with some great cafes, bars and several excellent venues for live music. Unfortunately it’s also become a magnet for druggies, street drinkers and aggressive beggars and care should be taken in this neighborhood.
- Some music venues you might find your way to are the Docks de Sud which is a superclub holding techno, drum and bass all-nighters and Le Nomad . Both are in the beginnings of the Quartiers Nords, the nearest metro station is Bougainville although Docks de Sud is on the tram network. You should organize transport back to wherever you’re staying (unless you’re planning on an all-nighter) this is definitely not a neighborhood to wander around in after dark.
- Bougainville is also pretty sleazy day or night with drug dealers openly operating under the noses of the security guards.
- Det finns massor av gratis festivaler, utomhusbio på sommaren och igen, var försiktig med väskor, tillhörigheter i dessa situationer.
- Another venue, not very easy to access, is the Friche Belle de Mai , a former factory with a spectacular rooftop bar which opens on Fridays and Saturday nights during the summer, it hosts some of the best club and live music nights the city has to offer. It’s in a poor neighborhood, some consider dangerous, although I’ve never experienced problems around there or felt unsafe. Nearby is a repertory cinema, the Gyptis , which has films in their original language.
- There are news reports of robbers posing as fake Police, using a blue flashing light on their car, pulling over drivers to then demand wallets, mobile phones, and other valuables. These thefts are occurring on motorways during the early hours, between 2am and 6am and are reported to be taking place in Marseille and all along the French Riviera. Something to be careful of if you’re driving.
Don’t be put off coming here, I love the city and I’m very happy here, but it is dangerous, violent and crime infested and is somewhere you need to be on your guard to a much greater extent than in other places.
Much of the serious crime is gang and drug related and is most unlikely to affect a visitor unless you take a bus out to one of the housing projects in the notorious Quartiers Nord and look for trouble. These are like the favelas of Latin America, entire housing projects or estates controlled by criminal gangs which the police can only enter when there are several vans full of them, armed with assault rifles and body armor. If you’re curious, the ‘Hotel du Nord project’ offers home-stays in the North of the city and guided walks. Some efforts are being made to improve the lives and chances of people in these areas but to a large extent whole sections of society are disenfranchised.
All I can say is these are my views based upon lived experience of twelve months in Marseille. I hope it’s helpful.”
Läs mer
Kolla in vår experttips om hur du undviker brott på franska rivieran, och lär dig om gasningar och heminvasioner.
Här är en detaljerad brottsanalys, uppdelad efter stad:
