National Security Continues its Campaign Against Counterfeit Alcohol Dealers and Directors Reveal the Latest Developments

The national security services continue their efforts to enforce measures and surveillance operations aimed at institutes and public stores serving alcoholic beverages or beverages mixed with alcohol. This initiative aims to ensure the correct application of the regulations of the law on health and safety measures required by the state of health emergency.

A statement from the Directorate General of National Security stated that surveillance operations are being undertaken by the national security services, in cooperation with the territorial authorities and the customs administration, as well as the national office of food safety during the period from 12 to 15 September this year. These operations consisted of monitoring 144 institutes and public stores in Casablanca, Rabat and Agadir. They recorded 99 fines for non-compliance with the type of license, the unjustified absence of the person in charge, non-compliance with mandatory permits of a section of employees, as well as non-compliance with social distancing and failure to wear protective masks by employees. 20 fines, some of them fixed, were issued to offenders. The statement also added that the Judicial Police has begun investigations under the auspices of the General Prosecutor’s Office, to define all the acts attributed to the managers of the stores that have received the fines.

Regarding the city of Marrakech, the same source said that the surveillance operations of the local committee, which consists of the national security services, the local and customs authorities and the national office of food safety have identified on September 16 ongoing 7 violations in surveillance operations targeting 20 institutes and public stores. The statement said that these operations undertaken in the city of Marrakech were able to seize 124 bottles of expired beer, 36 bottles of alcoholic beverages without tax stickers or with questionable stickers. The National Office of Food Safety destroyed consumables that did not meet the standards of health safety found in four public stores.

After the surveillance operations undertaken, the local authorities decided to close down a bar in one of the hotel units. The bar was found to be in non-compliance with the state of health emergency measures to combat the spread of the virus.