Samir Nasri, the former French international footballer, was taken into police custody in Paris on 9 July and questioned for approximately ten hours before being released without charge. The detention, confirmed by French judicial sources, forms part of an investigation into drug importation, criminal conspiracy, and money laundering by an organised group.

The inquiry centres on the XS nightclub in Ivry-sur-Seine, a southern suburb of Paris, where Nasri served as manager and became a shareholder in 2016. Investigators from the financial investigations brigade (BRIF) are examining whether the venue was used to channel or launder proceeds from narcotics trafficking. According to details published in the French press, the probe is examining links between Nasri and the Berrebouh family from Marseille, with whom he has been acquainted since childhood. One line of inquiry, reported by Russian media, alleges that large cash sums were delivered at the club to the wife of a convicted drug trafficker, Hakim Berrebouh, while he was imprisoned between 2021 and 2023.

Nasri, now 39 and working as a television pundit, has not been indicted. French reports indicate he told investigators that he orally transferred his shares in the club to Hakim Berrebouh during a meeting in Dubai in 2020, but the transaction was never formalised. The former midfielder, once dubbed “the little prince” of French football, had already faced separate legal pressure: in March, tax authorities seized assets worth approximately €5.5 million over alleged unpaid income and wealth taxes, a claim his lawyers contest. German media also recall a 2018 doping ban that sidelined him for 18 months.

The investigation remains open, and French authorities have not ruled out future charges. Nasri was previously questioned in late June, according to Russian press accounts, suggesting the inquiry has been active for weeks. No further restrictions have been placed on him.