Pilots Pascal Fauret and Bruno Odos were freed of all charges in a French court in Aix-en-Provence in the South of France, last week. These are the men that staged a daring escape from the Dominican Republic back In 2013. They had been sentenced to 20 years in jail for drug trafficking after 700kg of cocaine was found in suitcases on the Falcon 50 aircraft they would have flown to France from Punta Cana International Airport.
The case was a sensation at the time and called “Air Cocaine” in the press. The escape was by boat off the beaches of Punta Cana. The men were arrested in France and sent to trial. In 2019, they were sentenced to 6 years in prison, but they immediately filed an appeal. The special appeal court reviewed their case and absolved the two, but confirmed the sentences of two directors of the company of 6 years in prison, and that of Stephanois Ali Bouchareb, who was said to be the mastermind behind the whole deal, who was sentenced to 18 years behind bars.
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Diario Libre
France Bleu
12 July 2021