Yann Castres Takes Command of Rennes Criminal Division
Yann Castres has assumed command of the Division of the Criminalité Territoriale (DCT) within the Police Nationale in Rennes.
He now oversees a unit of 80 investigators tasked with tackling violent crime, narcotics trafficking, and crimes against minors.
Two Decades Tracking Organized Crime Across France
He subsequently spent six years tracking organized crime syndicates nationwide with the central directorate of the judicial police. His field experience includes serving as head of the departmental anti-crime brigade (BAC) in Essonne, where he led operations in high-density housing neighborhoods such as Les Tarterêts and La Grande Borne. Prior to attending the commissioners’ school, he served within the central office dedicated to illicit drug trafficking, which was restructured into OFAST in 2020.
Tackling a Backlog of 2,000 Minor Protection Files
Upon his appointment in the summer of 2026, Castres stepped into his role immediately following a surge in investigations regarding crimes against minors in the Rennes jurisdiction.
Local judicial authorities reported approximately 2,000 active procedures concerning sexual assaults and rapes involving minors in early July. To address the backlog, Castres mobilized his 80 investigators—alongside specialized brigades, operational reserves, and retired officers—to conduct an exhaustive inventory of pending files. To reinforce these efforts permanently, authorities announced plans to establish a regional antenna of the national minors’ office (OFMIN) in Rennes.
Combating Urban Narcotics Networks and Rising Potency
Alongside child protection, disrupting narcotics trafficking remains a core mandate for the DCT under Castres’ leadership.
Police assessments indicate that drug networks continue to generate localized violence and public health hazards, driven by cannabis potency levels testing significantly higher than a decade prior, alongside the growing proliferation of cocaine across urban areas. While local officials emphasize that Rennes does not face the same scale of organized crime as major ports like Marseille, law enforcement maintains an active operational footprint in sensitive neighborhoods to curb trafficking networks before violence escalates.
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