A 63-year-old man has been sentenced to 20 years in prison by the Oran Criminal Court of Appeal after being caught smuggling 675 kilograms of cannabis. The suspect was arrested by the Gendarmerie Nationale on the East-West motorway while transporting the drugs inside a vehicle camouflaged with fruits and vegetables. Acting on intelligence regarding a shipment originating from the border town of Maghnia, authorities intercepted the suspect as he headed toward the eastern provinces. During the trial, the defendant admitted to acting on behalf of a Moroccan drug lord for a fee of 200,000 dinars per trip, leveraging his knowledge of border routes acquired during his previous employment in Tlemcen. He was convicted of belonging to a criminal network and the illicit trafficking of narcotics.