The Dakar Magistrates' Court heard a case on Monday involving nitrous oxide (laughing gas). The defendant operated a network between the Ouakam, HLM, Mermoz, and Almadies neighborhoods. The trafficking operation was dismantled by the regional narcotics brigade of the Orctis (Central Office for the Repression of Illicit Drug Trafficking). Three individuals, including the supplier, were arrested with 76 canisters of nitrous oxide intended for trafficking. This product is also used in medicine and in baking recipes.

It all started with an anonymous tip about a drug trafficking operation run by a 24-year-old named Mohamed Danfakha, described as the main supplier. He supplied several dealers who, in turn, sold the merchandise in Dakar, particularly in furnished apartments transformed into veritable mini nightclubs.

This is how Commissioner Adama Welé's men infiltrated the network, by placing an order for two bottles at 80,000 CFA francs each with Bocar Ba, a Yango taxi driver. Ba sent his delivery driver, Moukhtar Doumbouya. The meeting was set in Yoff, in front of the Bara Couture workshops. Upon arrival, Doumbouya was immediately arrested with the two bottles. The driver promptly told Bocar, "I can take you to the person who gave me the product."

We headed to Ouakam where Bocar Ba was woken up at his home by police officers. In his room, investigators discovered four bottles. "Danfakha is my supplier," he told the detectives.

For the iron, the police placed another order for six canisters of nitrous oxide. At 8:45 p.m., Mohamed Danfakha arrived at the housing project in a Ford Fusion. He was also arrested. In his bag, the detectives found 1.2 million CFA francs in cash and an iPhone 16 Pro Max. In the trunk of the car, they found 72 carefully packaged canisters of nitrous oxide.

When questioned by investigators, Bocar Ba admitted to collaborating with the supplier for over a year, while swearing he wasn't a drug dealer. For his part, Doumbouya, the delivery driver, maintained he didn't know what he was transporting: "I get paid 3,000 CFA francs for a delivery."

Danfakha, for his part, offers a series of contradictory accounts. He claims to have sold gas to bakers, then to young people, and without invoices to avoid inspections. He claims to have known Ba for three weeks. He even refused to allow his phone to be examined and his home to be searched.

A booming business in Dakar by night

For investigators, the case reveals the scale of a worrying phenomenon. Laughing gas is now circulating in furnished apartments and at private parties. According to police, the mobility of delivery drivers, urban density, and the lack of enforcement make the trade difficult to suppress.

Placed in pretrial detention on November 13, 2025, the defendants Bocar Ba and Mouhamed Danfakha admitted to the charges of offering and transferring property. Moukhtar Doumbaya, for his part, denies being a member of the network.

In his statements, Danfakha said he imported the product from France as part of his partnership with bakeries and pastry shops. "I imported the product by sea, through a freight forwarder. And I have no problems. The product was cleared through customs as a legitimate item," he claims.

In his closing arguments, the public prosecutor requested the acquittal of Moukhtar Doumbouya and two-year prison sentences for Bocar and Mouhamed, in addition to the confiscation of 1.2 million CFA francs and the car. The defense argued for acquittal.

Deliberated on November 24, 2025.