French intelligence probes surveillance device on docked ship

(MENAFN) France’s domestic intelligence service, the DGSI, has launched an investigation after a surveillance device was discovered aboard a ship docked in the southern port of Sete, following intelligence provided by Italian authorities, according to reports.

The operation, conducted last week under instructions from the Paris Prosecutor’s Office, targeted the passenger vessel Fantastic, an Italian-owned ship with a capacity of 2,000 people. During the operation, two suspects—one Latvian and one Bulgarian—were detained on suspicion of tampering with the device.

The Latvian suspect was transported to Paris over the weekend and formally placed under investigation for “violating an automated data processing system in service of a foreign power.”

He was subsequently remanded in custody, while the Bulgarian national was released.

DGSI searches conducted both on the vessel and in Latvia uncovered additional materials related to the case.

French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez described the incident as “very serious” in an interview with public broadcaster Franceinfo, saying, “Some individuals attempted to breach a ship’s data processing system.” He added that investigators suspect it was “a foreign interference operation,” noting that “these foreign interferences nowadays always come from the same country.”

The Fantastic has been operating in the Mediterranean for approximately 20 years, according to reports.

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