Cocaine trafficking gang caught in Corfu - Retired police officer one of the members
CORFU. Ten members were arrested - A pistol, two cars, mobile phones and €5,600 were seized.
Ten members of a criminal organisation engaged in cocaine trafficking were arrested in Corfu, including two of the leading members.
According to information received by Enimerosi, five of the members were Albanians and five were Greeks, including a retired police officer who was arrested in 2020 in Athens for involvement in robberies in OPAP betting shops and filling stations.
Three members of the organisation are being held in custody throughout the country.
The case file includes a large number of people who bought cocaine from members of the organisation.
A pistol, two cars used as means of transporting drugs, mobile phones and €5,600 were seized.
According to an announcement from the Hellenic Police (ELAS), ten members of the gang were arrested in an organised police operation in the last two days, including two leading members (a 38-year-old man and a 45-year-old woman), were charged with forming a gang and trafficking cocaine.
Arrested for their participation in the criminal organisation are nine more members with various roles in it (transporters, collectors, etc.), while the case file includes another 26 people, who bought drugs from the members of the organisation.
Following an investigation, it was found that the members of the organisation, having distinct organisational roles and operating under the guidance of the leader, formed this criminal organisation at least from the end of September 2022, with the purpose of trafficking cocaine.
The police investigation had led to individual police operations against members of the criminal organisation.
As for the members' activity:
- The leaders of the criminal organisation were three people - two foreign nationals, 38 and 32, and a 45-year-old foreign woman.
- The 38-year-old "leader" was responsible for finding the quantities of cocaine, the organisation of the leadership and the distribution of actions to the other members, providing them with instructions for the trafficking of drugs.
- The 32-year-old, the "deputy leader" who is currently in custody, was mainly in charge of organising the transport of drugs from Athens to Corfu, while the 45-year-old woman was responsible for the receipt of drugs from the "transporters", the adulteration, the distribution of quantities and then the sale of these drugs to the traffickers on the instructions of the "leader" and the "deputy leader".
- There were also other people involved who were recruited by the leaders and were responsible for transporting and distributing the drugs and collecting the money from their sale. Fourteen persons were involved - five Greeks (3 men and 2 women) and nine foreign nationals (8 men and 1 woman) aged between 25 and 49.
Of the abovementioned members, five people (3 foreign nationals and 2 Greek women) were arrested during the operations in Corfu and one more Greek in Agrinio with the assistance of the local Drugs Squad, while two men are in custody for cases related to the activities of the organisation.
- Two Greeks, aged 36 and 39, who were trafficking smaller quantities, were arrested during yesterday's operation in Corfu.
The members of the organisation, in order to conceal their illegal activity, used phones that were registered to non-existent persons (ghost persons) and they communicated with coded phrases regarding the type, price and quantity of drugs.
During searches on Wednesday 10 and Thursday 11 January, the following were found and confiscated:
- 1 pistol
- Cash amounting to €5,600
- Small amount of cocaine
- 2 cars
- 8 mobile phones
The total quantity of cocaine trafficked by the gang in the abovementioned period is estimated to exceed 1.5kg, of which 950g were seized, while the total amount of money is estimated at €95,000.
The arrested persons were taken to appear before the Corfu Prosecutor.
CHRISTINA GEREKOU
