LYON, France, Oct. 1 (UPI) -- A deputy police chief in Lyon, France, nicknamed "Supercop" for his fight against drugs has been arrested for alleged drug trafficking and money laundering.
Radio France Internationale reported Michel Neyret, 55, is accused of compensating informants with confiscated drugs, then working with criminals to resell the drugs.
Neyret, a 30-year veteran of the French police force, also is being questioned about possible links between police and French organized crime and the Italian mafia, RFI said.
RFI said three other senior officers and Neyret's wife have also been arrested in Lyon and Grenoble.
Recorded conversations during phone tapping that was part of an investigation into international drug trafficking allegedly revealed Neyret had received cash and gifts from organized crime members, including more than $40,000 for a trip to Morocco, RFI reported.
Neyret had received praise from many for reducing drug crime in Lyon, France's second-largest city. He appeared regularly in French media to talk about fighting crime and was featured in a documentary on a French TV station.
If the allegations prove to be true, it would be "very painful" for the national police force, Interior Minister Claude Gueant said.
