Two military personnel appear to have been the ringleaders of a criminal organisation accused of defrauding thousands of people through bogus cryptocurrency investments, making profits of more than $8 million.

Police arrested 17 people over the scheme, nine of them members of the armed forces. They were brought before the Katerini Public Prosecutor’s Office, in the northern region of Pieria, and charged with felonies including membership of a criminal organisation, fraud and money laundering. The suspects are due to begin giving statements to an investigating magistrate on Saturday morning. The case file also names nine other people, who have not been arrested.

The group was broken up by the Katerini Crime Prosecution and Investigation Sub-Directorate of the Hellenic Police. Investigators believe it began operating in 2025 in several parts of the country. It promised to double investors’ initial capital with little or no risk, and is thought to have drawn in at least 10,000 people and taken around $8 million from them.

It worked through legitimate-looking companies and an online platform, giving investors false assurances that their money would double.

Police carried out a coordinated operation in Pieria, Larissa, Mytilene on Lesbos, Patras, Ioannina, Komotini, Preveza, Kavala and the Attica region around Athens. Seventeen members were arrested, and a separate file was opened against the other nine.

Investigators found the group ran a pyramid scheme, promising extraordinarily high returns and a doubling of capital within 50 days. It did not hold the licence required by the relevant regulator. Members repeatedly made false promises of high, guaranteed returns with minimal or no risk, while the rest of the group worked to find new investors.

Reports say the two ringleaders were non-commissioned officers, and that the group had offices in Katerini, Thessaloniki, Larissa, Patras and on a Dodecanese island. Recruits were reportedly offered bonuses for bringing in new investors, and withdrawals were said to have been blocked in recent weeks, leaving investors unable to retrieve their money.

So far, 18 victims have been identified, who invested a combined €55,970 through the platform.

Officers searched five offices, nine homes and other premises. They seized 32 mobile phones, 38 portable storage devices, 16 hard disks, 21 laptops, seven desktop computers, 15 tablets, a money-counting machine, a CCTV recorder, bank cards and SIM cards, and €295,090 in cash. A flare pistol, three firecrackers and 26 metal pellets were also found in the possession of one of those arrested.