Joël Soudron

Joël Soudron is a French drug trafficker who has been on the run since his escape from prison in 2018. He was initially arrested in Mali in 2016 but escaped two years later. In 2021, he was added to Europol's list of most wanted criminals. Soudron, a 46-year-old from Guadeloupe, was known to use multiple false identities to evade authorities. He was serving a six-year sentence when he escaped and is scheduled to be tried in June for another cocaine trafficking case. Soudron's recent arrest in Panama on March 29, 2026, under a false identity, is newsworthy because it marks the end of a long manhunt for a major figure in the French drug trade. His capture is significant for international law enforcement efforts to combat drug trafficking.