Police officers of the Department of the Coping of Organized Crime of Crete of ADOE have dismantled a criminal organisation in Crete, whose members have been active in the continuous and professional committing of animal theft and extortion, as well as fraud against the financial interests of the European Union.
For the case, in the context of a police operation carried out in various areas of Crete with the participation of police officers of the Department of Special Suppressive Counterterrorism Unit (T.E.K.A.M.) of Crete, the Crime Prevention and Suppression Group (O.P.K.E.) of the Department of Police of Heraklion, as well as the Departments of Direct Intervention (T.A.E.) of Heraklion and Lasithi, a total of 8 people.
These are 4 members of the organization, aged 47, 34, 30 and 19, while the rest of the arrested, aged 69, 49 and 45, as well as a 36-year-old woman, were arrested in the context of investigations by the self-evident procedure, accused – as the case may be – of rheumatism, as well as violations of the laws on weapons, false responsible statement, animal theft – zooicide and welfare rules.
In addition, the 34-year-old is accused of resisting the principle, as during his arrest, he resisted and bio-acted against the police, who exercised the absolutely necessary violence to stop him.
A long and methodical investigation was preceded, in which the action of the above 4 members of the organization, organized for the purpose of committing distinguished animal theft, was established, seeking to obtain illegal economic benefits.
Furthermore, it was found that they had developed a specific methodology while taking protective measures in order not to reveal their illegal action.
In particular, at first stage, they chose the appropriate target flock, which they were to remove, having previously collected information about the location of the flock, any measures to guard the site, as well as the time of the owner's stay in the area.
They then systematically supervised and supervised the site in order to further organise the movement of animals removed and to select appropriate routes to ensure that their action and temporary storage area are covered.
Subsequently, they were intended to remove the animals they removed, either by moving on foot, or by transporting them by vehicles to safe places until their final promotion to third-party recipients of crime products or their specificization.
Finally, their criminal activity was completed with the slaughter of the removed ovine and caprine animals and their placing on the meat market.
The key member and core decision-making was the 47-year-old, both at the stage of preparatory actions in relation to the planning, coordination and organisation of the organisation's action, such as the selection of objectives, the determination of the mode of action and the distribution of individual roles, and in the implementation of their illegal action, such as the management or promotion of removed ovine and caprine animals to third parties.
At the same time, in order to achieve their purpose, the members activated the 69-year-old, who provided assistance at individual stages of their activity.
So far, a total of 4 cases of distinct animal theft and an attempt have been identified, which took place from February to June 2026, in various areas of Crete.
Specifically, it was found that members of the organisation removed at least 182 sheep and goats, as well as a milking machine, of an estimated total value of EUR 43,000.
Moreover, the parallel criminal action of the 47-year-old and the 19-year-old, who, acting methodically, had imposed – at least in the last decade – a deliberate regime of terror and intimidation in the area where they were active, using violence, threats and other criminal acts against their victims.
More specifically, in order to obtain illegal property benefits, they were subject to trespassing or illegal ownership of parcels, which were exploited financially either through uncontrolled grazing of their flocks or through the cultivation of parts thereof, without paying a fee.
As a result of their above-mentioned criminal activity, extensive damage was caused to trees and other crops, while in some cases total destruction occurred, with total damage exceeding EUR 120,000.
The illegal asset benefit obtained through the professional performance of the offence of extortion consisted in particular of:
- the territorial extension of their professional and proprietary activity;
- the illegal ownership of parcels belonging to third parties;
- the cultivation of parts of cereal land used to feed their ovine and caprine animals;
- increasing their flock and, consequently, aid through State subsidies,
- minimising the high cost of the feed market,
- the gradual integration of younger members of their families into the same illegal activity.
In the same context, the competent Forest Office shall investigate all complaints lodged for agrarian losses.
At the same time, the 47-year-old, the 34-year-old, the remaining non-members of the organisation, as well as a 40-year-old woman, are accused of subsidy fraud, as well as of financial research carried out, as well as cross-checks carried out on related applications and data, it emerged that these made inaccurate statements in the years 2019 to 2025.
In particular, virtual statements of livestock units were found, both at the level of the pastures they held and by extension of a physical establishment of declared livestock and at the level of economic viability.
As a result of these statements, they allegedly received an unlawful total of EUR 341,250,88 as beneficiaries of financial aid from European Union funds.
Notable is the fact that one of the defendants mentioned above in the year 2025 submitted a livestock declaration for 460 sheep and goats, but during the audit it was found that it does not have a flock.
Επίσης, σε ελέγχους που πραγματοποιήθηκαν σε 5 ποίμνια, διαπιστώθηκαν – κατά περίπτωση – αποκλίσεις σε σχέση με τα δηλωθέντα στις κτηνοτροφικές δηλώσεις που υπεβλήθησαν για τα έτη 2025 και 2026, μη ύπαρξη των προβλεπόμενων ενωτίων καθώς και απουσία της προβλεπόμενης πινακίδας.
Επιπλέον, σε 3 περιπτώσεις διαπιστώθηκαν παραβάσεις σχετικά με τους κανόνες ευζωίας, καθώς και παθητική κακοποίηση συνολικά 12 σκύλων, λόγος για τον οποίο επεβλήθησαν και τα ανάλογα διοικητικά πρόστιμα.
Σε έρευνες που πραγματοποιήθηκαν σε οικίες, βρέθηκαν και κατασχέθηκαν, καραμπίνα, ημιαυτόματο πιστόλι, 41 πλήρη φυσίγγια, 2 μαχαίρια, καθώς και 21 ενώτια, τα οποία έφεραν διαφορετικούς κωδικούς κτηνοτρόφων. Επίσης, σε 2 οικίες εκτελέστηκαν εντολές διακοπής ηλεκτροδότησης που εκκρεμούσαν από τον ΔΕΔΔΗΕ.
Για την υπόθεση κατηγορείται για παράβαση καθήκοντος και ένας δασονόμος, καθώς, όπως προέκυψε στο πλαίσιο της έρευνας, προέβη σε ενημέρωση των κατηγορουμένων σχετικά με την πρόθεση παθόντων να υποβάλουν μηνύσεις σε βάρος τους.
Σημειώνεται ότι, σε βάρος των κατηγορούμενων στο παρελθόν έχουν σχηματιστεί – κατά περίπτωση – πλήθος δικογραφιών για παράβαση της νομοθεσίας για ζωοκλοπή – ζωοκτονία.
Επιπλέον, ένας απ’ αυτούς έχει κατηγορηθεί και για απόπειρα ανθρωποκτονίας, φθορά ξένης ιδιοκτησίας, ενώ του είχαν επιβληθεί και περιοριστικοί όροι.
Οι συλληφθέντες οδηγήθηκαν στην αρμόδια εισαγγελική Αρχή, ενώ τα πειστήρια που κατασχέθηκαν, αποστέλλονται για εργαστηριακές εξετάσεις.
