At the Marseille courthouse, judges referred to them as "narcotourists." Others called them "holidaymakers." In a purely summertime phenomenon, the court held expedited hearings of young people arrested at drug-dealing points who, once in police custody or before the court, claimed they had come to Marseille for vacation.

They divided their time between going to the beach and dealing drugs to fund their stay, occasionally lending a hand to one of the networks in the city center or in one of the northern neighborhoods. "The vacation explanation comes up regularly," confirmed Nicolas Ruby, head of the emergency duty section at the Marseille prosecutor's office. In need of a place to stay, some of these seasonal dealers started as soon as they arrived at the Gare Saint-Charles train station. Others waited until their money ran out. A day's work as a "charbonneur" (dealer) brought in between €100 and €200, while a "chouf" (lookout) earned between €80 and €120.

A., a 22-year-old from Poitiers, described himself as a tourist. Dressed in a jersey of the city's football club Olympique de Marseille, he was stopped by police conducting surveillance in the city of Mail (14th arrondissement) on August 15. "I'd been in Marseille for a week, I came with a bit of spending money, and since the day before yesterday, I ran out," he said. "I wanted to go back to Poitiers, so I contacted a friend in Marseille to ask if he knew of a housing project where I could be a lookout to make a bit of cash and go home."

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