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4 clusters · 21 sources · 48 days · First seen · Last updated

Organized crime activity in Thessaloniki

Overview

Greek police in Thessaloniki intercepted a contract killing plot involving a professional sniper. The operation, supported by Interpol intelligence, targeted internal conflicts within the Daltonlar, a Turkish criminal organization split into rival factions.

During a raid in the Sykia area, authorities arrested two men, aged 30 and 36, acting as weapons couriers. They were apprehended while leaving a ground-floor warehouse carrying heavy weaponry, including a Yugoslavian-origin rifle with a precision scope, an Uzi submachine gun, ammunition, and wireless communication devices. The 36-year-old suspect claimed he received the weapons on September 10 in the Evkarpia area on behalf of a 49-year-old Turkish national currently held in Korydallos Prison. He alleged he was acting under threats against his family, while the Greek suspect claimed ignorance regarding the package contents. Although the suspects were initially released under restrictive conditions, such as travel bans and mandatory police reporting, this move reportedly caused dissatisfaction within the police force.

Following a prosecutor's intervention, the Council of Appeals ordered the pretrial detention of both men. This led to new arrest warrants, resulting in the 36-year-old being located and arrested in Kavala during a coordinated operation, while the 30-year-old subsequently surrendered to the Organized Crime Unit in Thessaloniki.

In a recent development, a Thessaloniki investigating magistrate placed the 49-year-old Turkish national in pretrial detention following his interrogation. He faces accusations of being an accessory to aggravated illegal possession of weapons and involvement in a criminal organization. While the suspect denied all charges, claiming no connection to the weapons, he also faces an outstanding extradition request from Turkey regarding a computer fraud case. Although the Greek Supreme Court previously ruled favorably on that extradition, the new criminal proceedings in Thessaloniki have temporarily suspended its execution.

Entities

Thessaloniki · Greek Police · Daltonlar · Korydallos Prison · Syki

Claims

What the coverage asserts, and how many sources carry each claim.

Timeline

  1. [CRIME] 4 sources
    Thessaloniki court detains Turkish national in arms trafficking case

    A 49-year-old Turkish national has been detained in Thessaloniki for alleged involvement in an arms trafficking case involving a sniper rifle and Uzi found in Syki.

  2. [CRIME] 10 sources
    Thessaloniki arms trafficking: Two men arrested for supplying Turkish mafia

    Two men, a 36-year-old Turkish national and a 30-year-old Greek, have been re-arrested in Greece for trafficking heavy weaponry intended for the Turkish mafia organization Dalton.

  3. [CRIME] 11 sources
    Thessaloniki police intercept Turkish mafia sniper plot

    Greek police in Thessaloniki intercepted a contract killing plot linked to the Turkish mafia Daltonlar, seizing a sniper rifle and an Uzi. Two suspects were arrested but later released under restrictive terms.

  4. [CRIME] 2 sources
    Thessaloniki police identify six suspects in anarchist ‘anti-Zionist patrol’

    Six members of the anarchist group Rouvikonas face charges in Greece for organizing an ‘anti-Zionist patrol’ in Thessaloniki, involving alleged racist incitement and membership in a criminal organization.

Sources

cnn.gr · cretaone.gr · dialogos.com.cy · dimokratia.gr · ekriti.gr · g4media.ro · greekcitytimes.com · iefimerida.gr · ieidiseis.gr · lawandorder.gr · lykavitos.gr · naftemporiki.gr · newsbeast.gr · pelop.gr · stoxos.gr · tanea.gr · thepressroom.gr · thessnews.gr · thestival.gr · thetoc.gr · veteranos.gr

This summary has been updated 3 times: see revision history