- Shocking revelations of a network involving more than 10 corrupt police officers.
- Alarm has been raised over the ‘cohabitation’ of a Greek police officer with the wife of the alleged second-in-command of the criminal ring.
- At the same time, allegations surfaced about the operation of an illegal brothel on Syngrou Avenue, allegedly run by a man of Albanian origin known as “Andreas”.
- To this day, Mitsos’ murder remains unsolved, with the case file still open at the homicide squad.
- The case has striking parallels with the murder of sacked EKAM officer Spyros Papachristou.
By Vagelis Τriantis
A report alleging links between a senior Hellenic Police officer and the deputy leader of a criminal network protecting casinos and brothels has reached the force’s internal affairs department.
According to Data Journalists, the officer in question is said to have been in contact with the murdered fuel merchant Giorgos Mitsos. The officer is said to have informed Mitsos about officer transfers and postings according to Mitsos’ preferences. The officer is currently facing charges of dereliction of duty and breach of official secrecy and was due to go on trial a few days ago.
Data Journalists are investigating the Greek Mafia file, uncovering details of its links to corrupt Greek police officers, and presenting details from the Internal Affairs report and investigation.
The Internal Affairs investigation found no evidence linking the officer to the protection racket involving more than ten corrupt police officers. The only link found was that the officer reportedly lived in the same apartment building as the wife of the alleged deputy leader of the network.
The allegation and the inconclusive investigation
During the Internal Affairs Division’s investigation into the protection racket involving corrupt police officers, two key pieces of information came to light.
The first concerned an illegal brothel on Syngrou Avenue, allegedly run by a man of Albanian origin called “Andreas”. The second concerned a Greek police officer who had already been suspended for another case. This officer was allegedly in frequent contact with the murdered fuel merchant Giorgos Mitsos, who was executed with 40 bullets outside a petrol station in Gerakas in June 2022.
According to Data Journalists, the officer allegedly had “close ties” with a deputy leader of the criminal organization. Police surveillance of the deputy leader revealed that he visited an apartment building in a specific area near central Athens in early September.
Officers discovered that the suspended police officer also lived in the same building. When they checked the building’s doorbells, they found that one of the names corresponded to the alleged deputy leader’s wife. The visit lasted an hour, but the officers could not determine whether the deputy leader had met with the police officer or had simply visited his wife.
The investigation continued but did not produce any conclusive results. Recorded conversations between the deputy leader and his wife suggested that they had a friendly relationship with a Greek police officer who matched the description of the one under investigation. However, there was no concrete evidence linking the officer to the criminal organization’s or its members’ activities.
The trial and the appeal
The Greek police officer in question was in frequent contact with the murdered Giorgos Mitsos. Published communications made shortly before Mitsos’ murder showed that the officer had informed him of police transfers and appointments to posts favorable to the murdered fuel merchant.
Following the publication of the incriminating text messages, the officer was suspended. Prosecutors asked the Greek police to provide the full case file, including the controversial text messages and related communications.
The officer was charged with dereliction of duty, classified as a misdemeanor, for failing to act on Spyros Papachristou’s mobile phone for two years. A trial was scheduled for 16 January at the Athens Misdemeanor Court but was postponed after the officer filed an appeal against the charges.
It is worth noting that the murder of Mitsos remains unsolved to this day, with the case file still open at the homicide department.
Acquittal over suppressed text messages in Papachristou case
The conduct of the Greek police continues to raise questions about its handling of murders linked to the Greek mafia. One prominent case is the murder of former EKAM officer Spyros Papachristou. Papachristou was murdered on May 1, 2018, outside the “Kritikos” tavern in Paiania. According to an investigation by the National Intelligence Service (EYP), which was later submitted to the judiciary, Papachristou was reportedly closely linked to members of the Greek mafia.
The case was assigned to the homicide squad. Still, until the summer of 2020, the mobile phones of the murdered ex-officer were neglected, forgotten in a drawer at the Attica General Police Directorate (GADA). It was then that the two phones in Papachristou’s possession were sent to the Criminal Investigation Directorate of the Greek police for analysis, on the orders of Citizens’ Protection Minister Michalis Chrysochoidis. Investigators were trying to uncover details of Papachristou’s communications and possible links between Greek police officers and organized crime.
Papachristou was no ordinary man. According to reports, he was “a person who maintained crucial balances, with strong ties to the police, connections to the underworld and relationships with prominent businessmen, politicians, and even the church”.
In 2021, shortly after the murder of journalist Giorgos Karaivaz, the Greek police sent the file on the murder of Spyros Papachristou to the prosecutor’s office. However, the file conspicuously lacked SMS messages and communications from Papachristou’s mobile phones.
As a result, prosecutors charged the then-head of the homicide squad with dereliction of duty. The officer went on trial in December that year. Despite the prosecutor’s recommendation for conviction, the officer was acquitted. Notably, he no longer works in the Homicide Department, having been transferred to a strategic position within the National Intelligence Agency (EYP).
Corrupt policemen and special guards
Revelations continue to emerge about the protection racket dismantled by the Greek police. So far, 11 police officers have been implicated, including three senior officers.
The charges they face include forming or aiding and abetting a criminal organization, bribery, dereliction of duty, fraud against the Greek state, corruption, insubordination, breach of official secrecy, and aiding and abetting a criminal organization.
A key figure in the case appears to be a 37-year-old Greek police officer who allegedly had links with the alleged leader of the criminal network. In addition, two district commanders are accused of seeking information about internal affairs officers investigating the racket.
