They were reported by an Egyptian, a member of the ring who had left him unpaid. The police operation took place yesterday in a central Athens location and in Agios Dimitrios. The scammers had extracted over 800,000 euros from their victims. See photos.

Call centers “pretended” to offer investment opportunities in the Gulf – 104 arrests of Arabs in two companies in Athens

A major police operation, revealing a ring that conducted telephone scams under the guise of investments in the Persian Gulf, was carried out yesterday by the Cyber Crime Division, with simultaneous searches, in the presence of judicial authorities, at two companies based in downtown Athens and in Agios Dimitrios.

During the operation (following a complaint by a former employee), assisted by two OPKE teams and units from the Digital Evidence Exploration and Examination Departments, a total of 104 individuals were arrested (87 from one company and 17 from the other). They were providing services as employees of supposed investment firms, aiming to deceive foreign nationals, mainly from Gulf countries.

All those arrested are Arabs, including the head of the ring, who has previously attracted law enforcement for drugs and pimping, and operates in the shipping industry and ship markets.

According to information, the ring had stolen over 800,000 euros from its victims. The complaint was made by an Egyptian, a member of the ring, who had been left unpaid by the gang leaders.

The “employees” contacted potential victims via phone, promising high returns on “investments,” and urged them to deposit money into accounts of the companies.

As part of the investigation, a large number of digital evidence, documents, and handwritten notes related to the ongoing criminal activity were seized. The digital evidence will be sent to the Criminal Investigations Division for laboratory analysis.

A case file has been prepared against the arrestees for the respective crimes of directing, organizing, and participating in a criminal organization that commits repeated, professional, and aggravated fraud.

The arrested will be brought today, along with the case file, to the Athens Prosecutor’s Office.