The Central Bureau of Judicial Investigations (BCIJ), under the General Directorate of Territorial Surveillance (DGST), carried out operations on Sunday and Monday (April 5 and 6) dismantled a terrorist cell composed of six individuals for their alleged involvement in committing criminal acts motivated by extremism, namely theft, burglary, and the laundering of criminal proceeds under the principle known as “legitimization of spoils.”
The suspects were arrested during separate operations in Kenitra, Casablanca, in the Dar El Gueddari region (Sidi Kacem province), and in Sidi Taïbi, the BCIJ stated in a press release.
The same source specifies that search warrants executed in connection with this case led to the seizure of extremist books and manuscripts, bladed weapons of various sizes—including sharp and blunt instruments—as well as sums of money in Moroccan dirhams suspected of originating from criminal activities.
Similarly, the search and seizure operations led to the confiscation of a balaclava, gloves, and three vehicles—including two cargo vans—as well as a motorcycle suspected of having been used to facilitate the commission of the aforementioned criminal acts.
The searches and investigations conducted, supported by police surveillance operations, revealed that the suspects, who are steeped in extremist ideology, had recently engaged in acts of theft and burglary as part of a criminal conspiracy aimed at profiting from criminal proceeds.
The criminal modus operandi adopted by the arrested individuals consisted of raiding livestock farms in several rural areas near Kenitra and Sidi Slimane for the purpose of theft and robbery, before reselling the stolen goods in local markets in the municipality of Joumaa Shim, in the province of Safi, and in the town of Zemamra (province of Sidi Bennour).
The investigations and inquiries still underway in this case aim to shed light on all the criminal activities the suspects are alleged to have committed and to determine the links between these crimes and their extremist connections, in addition to identifying and apprehending the remaining accomplices and associates.
For the purposes of the judicial investigation, the suspects have been placed in police custody as part of the inquiries and investigations conducted by the BCIJ under the supervision of the Public Prosecutor’s Office responsible for terrorism and extremism cases, the statement concluded.