The first suspects arrested in connection with the major tax evasion network uncovered in Thessaloniki, involving €206 million and dozens of so-called “straw men”, are expected to appear before an investigating magistrate today to give their statements.

Among them are two businessmen, accountants, a lawyer and former model and actor Errikos Petilon, who is due to appear early this morning. All 16 suspects still in custody are expected to have given their statements by Thursday.

Particularly striking is the fact that, alongside well-known businessmen from northern Greece and other individuals named in the extensive case file, the list of 1,283 defendants includes three former footballers and a prominent basketball player.

However, the precise nature of their alleged connection to the network is not clarified, at least in the report submitted to prosecutors. They are former footballers Pantelis Kafes, a member of Greece’s victorious Euro 2004 squad, Spyros Vallas and Petros Kanakoudis, as well as former international basketball player Panagiotis Liadelis, whose names appear on the list of defendants in the case.

The alleged network is believed to have operated by recruiting men and women facing severe financial difficulties, poorly paid workers, seriously ill people and even deceased individuals. Accountants and lawyers appear to have played managerial roles, overseeing fictitious employment arrangements and supplying a pool of dozens of nominal company representatives.

According to data analysed by Greece’s Independent Authority for Public Revenue (AADE), the investigation identified a total of 917 legal entities, of which 860 had outstanding debts, while 380 owed more than €120,000 each. The companies under investigation systematically and methodically failed to remit taxes and social security contributions, causing losses to the Greek state of €138,095,260.50 in taxes and €68,174,177.41 in social security contributions. The total amount owed reached €206,269,437.89, according to the investigating authority.

From washing dishes and delivering food to managing multimillion-euro portfolios

The investigation reveals a striking discrepancy between the declared incomes of 80 alleged frontmen and the enormous turnover or debts of the businesses they supposedly managed, ranging from traditional ouzo restaurants to major nightlife venues.

Perhaps the most remarkable case involves a man who holds the record for the largest debts. He was involved in 10 legal entities that accumulated liabilities of €30,033,700.32. Yet he declared no income and earned his living as a kitchen porter on a gross salary of just €453.50, while also working part-time as a lorry driver for a gross wage of €440.

A similar pattern emerged in the case of another individual who suddenly found himself involved in 32 legal entities with debts of €18,470,809.45, despite working full-time as a cashier on a salary of €755.68. Another alleged frontman appeared to manage 30 shell companies with debts totalling €8,483,820.01, while receiving state welfare support and working part-time as a waiter for €302.24.

Other examples include a woman listed as controlling 31 companies with debts of €4.5 million while simultaneously working as a kitchen porter, waitress and receptionist for meagre wages, and a man who supposedly managed 21 companies with debts of €4.2 million while working as a motorcycle delivery driver and barber.

One of the alleged frontmen identified during AADE’s investigation stated that he was responsible for all the companies appearing on his tax return but would not sign anything without first consulting his accountant. He explained that, following an accident in which he lost his leg and subsequently suffered a stroke, his accountant had taken over their management. The accident, he said, occurred five years earlier, and he identified the accountant responsible for preparing his tax returns. Many of the businesses registered in his name were nightclubs, even though he uses a wheelchair and has lost his left leg. During questioning, he also said he was afraid to sign documents.

Another person identified as a frontman in the case file told an inspector: “Since 2004, I have worked as a ‘designated fall guy’, doing face control and working as a security guard at entertainment venues [he named four establishments], and I was paid for this work. They pressured me into signing various contracts, which I signed because I trusted them and because I was afraid of losing my job. I did whatever they told me. [Name] or [name] would call me and tell me to go to a law office, where I signed, as I explained, without reading anything. Throughout this period, when I worked at the venues I mentioned, I received €50 a day, and at the end of the summer season they gave me €1,500 or €2,000.”

In another case, a man whose name appeared on several companies told investigators that the businesses established by his accountant had been set up “during the period when I had suffered a haemorrhagic stroke”. He had, in fact, been in a coma and discovered upon regaining consciousness that he supposedly owned 18 companies. He has since taken legal action against the accountant.

According to AADE’s report, the individuals registered as legal representatives and shareholders of the companies shared several characteristics:

• They had no personal assets or capital with which to undertake business investments.
• They displayed sudden and extensive business activity, becoming involved in numerous hospitality businesses despite having no previous experience in the sector.
• Before becoming involved in these businesses, they had worked as waiters, kitchen porters, delivery drivers and in similar roles.
• While supposedly running their businesses, they continued working as salaried employees elsewhere in the hospitality industry, including as waiters, kitchen porters and delivery drivers.
• The companies in which they participated had accumulated substantial tax and social security debts.
• Their incomes before their sudden involvement in business activity were low or non-existent, inconsistent with the financial profile of genuine entrepreneurs.

The first raid on an accounting office

During on-site inspections, officers from the Financial and Economic Crime Unit (SDOE) asked businesses to identify their accountants so that certification documents concerning their beneficial owners could be sent to them. Several businesses identified K.P., A.M. and P.N. as their accountants.

On 7 November 2024, SDOE investigators visited K.P.’s accounting office in Thessaloniki. After obtaining his client list, they discovered 156 businesses which, according to AADE’s report, were all operated through nominal managers or shareholders acting as frontmen and had accumulated debts. The accountant was formally requested to provide the companies’ accounting books and records. However, according to the report, he subsequently failed to produce them, submitting only certain TAXIS documents and a sworn declaration stating that his involvement was limited to establishing new businesses.

The investigation also found that, throughout 2024, the companies under scrutiny routinely failed to respond to requests for accounting books and records, with very few exceptions. Their approach changed in 2025, when they began submitting documentation. According to the report, their conduct during inspections resembled that of a criminal organisation, characterised by specific operating patterns, avoidance strategies and defensive mechanisms designed to ensure its survival and the continuation of unlawful activities.

14 January: Operation ‘Straw Men’

The SDOE Macedonia operational directorate, operating under AADE, continued its on-site inspections throughout 2025. On 14 January 2026, the operation codenamed “Straw Men” was launched, with the participation of all relevant AADE departments, including the Thessaloniki Collection and Certification Centre (KEVEIS), the Thessaloniki Financial Crime Investigation Service (YEDDE), the tax offices of Ampelokipoi, Kalamaria, Lagkadas and other districts, as well as specialised audit and enforcement units in Thessaloniki and Larissa. Within 15 days, officers carried out inspections at all establishments within Thessaloniki’s jurisdiction whose tax identification numbers were included in the prosecutor’s instructions. At the same time, joint teams worked to seize available cash assets against debts accumulated by the legal entities.

During the summer of 2026, inspectors conducted further visits to businesses to obtain sworn statements from employees and managers present at the time of inspection. They also attempted to locate the registered company managers, or alleged frontmen, but none could be found during any of the inspections. Attempts by staff to contact the managers by telephone were unsuccessful, either because their phones were switched off, incoming calls were blocked or the person responsible for the establishment did not know the manager’s telephone number.

Inspectors also requested electricity supply contracts and fixed-asset invoices, but rarely received the latter, as those present often did not know whether such documents existed.

Following the months-long investigation, AADE identified 80 people as alleged frontmen, some of whom had died. On Saturday, 7 November, 18 people were arrested, although two were subsequently charged with misdemeanours and released.

AADE’s announcement and the statement by Giorgos Pitsilis

Meanwhile, two central figures under investigation in Operation “Straw Men”, whose final phase took place in Thessaloniki from the evening of Thursday, 5 November 2026, under the supervision of the competent prosecuting authorities, remain at large. AADE’s Financial Transactions Enforcement Forces (DEOS) and the Hellenic Police are continuing their search for the two businessmen, who operate in the nightlife and hospitality sectors and are being investigated over possible involvement in the non-payment of taxes and social security contributions.

On Friday, 6 November 2026, two successive reports published by a particular news website disclosed information relating to Operation “Straw Men” while it was still under way. The reports included references to the individuals being sought, identifying them by their initials.

The same reports also named AADE officials who had travelled to Thessaloniki to coordinate the investigations, detentions and arrests. The publication of these details could have affected the smooth conduct of the operation and created risks to the safety of the officials involved.

Immediately after the information was published, AADE Governor Giorgos Pitsilis contacted Citizen Protection Minister Michalis Chrysochoidis, requesting assistance from the relevant police authorities in locating and bringing in the wanted individuals.

He also informed the Prosecutor of the Supreme Court about the publications and filed a criminal complaint against any responsible parties with the Athens Prosecutor’s Office, seeking an investigation into possible offences involving breaches of official secrecy, violations of the confidentiality of criminal preliminary proceedings and harbouring offenders.

Pitsilis’ statement

“For almost eleven years, as head of the country’s Tax and Customs Administration, I have never taken legal action against a journalist or media outlet over any malicious or offensive criticism, whether directed at me personally or at the work of the Authority.

“This case, however, is not about malicious criticism. It concerns the publication of information connected to an ongoing operation at a time when critical investigations were still being conducted and specific individuals were being sought. It concerns the effectiveness of the investigations, the preservation of evidence and the safety of officials operating in the field.

“In such a case, the administration has a duty not to remain passive. It must protect legality and ensure that inspection services can carry out their mission unhindered and effectively, without putting the safety of their personnel at risk. In a state governed by the rule of law, the possible leaking of information relating to ongoing investigations cannot be regarded as a matter of indifference. Nor can the notion that the effectiveness of inspection and law enforcement mechanisms is negotiable be accepted. No end justifies such means.

“Investigating such incidents is not a matter of administrative discretion. It is an institutional obligation.

“That is why I submitted a criminal complaint to the competent judicial authorities. I did so to ensure that incidents which could affect the functioning of justice, the effectiveness of investigations and the protection of the public interest are brought before the appropriate judges and investigated fully and thoroughly.

“The fight against major tax evasion and organised financial crime is not the responsibility of a single agency. It is a matter for the rule of law. And the rule of law does not retreat, does not yield to intimidation and does not compromise. It applies the law, protects its institutions and places its trust in justice. That is precisely what we have done.”