A criminal organization was dismantled, whose members were operating, through an NGO in Greece, to commit professional criminal fraud against citizen donors and embezzle funds intended for charity beneficiaries.
Six members of the organization, which was structured into two subgroups, were arrested.
ΣΧΕΤΙΚΑ ΑΡΘΡΑ
Mobile phones, computers, portable digital storage devices, designer handbags and wallets, brand-name watches, and 18,330 euros were seized.
Based on the financial investigation conducted so far and the questioning of the parents of 34 beneficiary children, the organization’s illicit financial gains are estimated at approximately 2,829,516 euros.
Furthermore, part of the illicit proceeds is alleged to have been used to fix the results of soccer matches.
The Greek Police statement:
The Northern Greece Sub-Directorate for Combating Organized Crime dismantled a criminal organization whose members are accused of systematically engaging, through an NGO—an NGO—to commit professional criminal fraud against citizens and donors and to embezzle funds intended for beneficiaries of fundraising campaigns, while part of the illicit proceeds is alleged to have been used to rig soccer matches and finance soccer clubs.
In a large-scale police operation carried out in the early hours of Friday, October 30, 2026, in various areas across the country, coordinated by the Financial Crimes Division, with the assistance of officers from the Organized Crime Division, the Northern Greece Criminal Investigation Sub-Directorate, and the Police Directorates of Piraeus, Aetolia-Acarnania, Magnesia, Pieria, Corinthia, Larissa, Elis, Trikala, Chania, Imathia, Arta, the First and Second Dodecanese, Kavala, Drama, Zakynthos, Rodopi, Euboea, Kozani, Fthiotida, and Arcadia, during which six members of the organization were arrested.
Charges were filed against them for—as applicable—criminal organization, felony fraud, felony embezzlement, money laundering, violation of legislation governing amateur and professional sports, combined with bribery and accepting bribes to fix match results.
This was preceded by a complaint regarding the transparency of the club’s operations, and, pursuant to a prosecutor’s order, was followed by a thorough police and financial investigation by the Financial Crimes Division.
As it turned out, the criminal organization was structured into two subgroups, each with distinct areas of criminal activity and a common member who served as the link between them.
Specifically, the first subgroup, consisting of three members (a 37-year-old, a 35-year-old, and a 32-year-old), had been in existence since at least October 2018, with the aim of obtaining illicit financial gain through the systematic defrauding of citizens. To this end, they used a nonprofit organization as a front, through which they collected money from donations intended to provide financial assistance to children suffering from serious illnesses or disabilities.
However, the fundraising activities were carried out without the permit required by law, and the association’s actual purpose differed from its stated one. As it turned out, only a small portion of the money raised went to the beneficiaries, while the majority was illegally embezzled by the 37-year-old man and the 35-year-old woman.
They held fundraisers for children with serious illnesses, but stole the money
As for their modus operandi, the members of the subgroup, in order to lend credibility to their activities and exploit the public’s compassion, they selected children suffering from serious illnesses—primarily various forms of cancer—as the beneficiaries of their fundraising efforts.
They would then post on social media, highlighting the children’s health problems and their need for financial assistance, such as costs for medical procedures, hospitalization, transportation, living expenses, and temporary housing and accommodation for the children and their families, while also posting photos of them.
In fact, among the donors were well-known artists, athletes, and businesspeople, whose donations the organization’s members publicly highlighted in order to bolster the association’s credibility and attract a larger number of donors.
Cross-checks revealed a total of 92 fundraising activities for 74 beneficiaries, of whom 55 have been identified.
Furthermore, the investigation found that the members of the subgroup, with the aim of maximizing revenue from donations and obtaining illicit financial gain, among other things:
published different photographs and information about beneficiary children during repeated fundraising campaigns in order to conceal from potential donors that other campaigns had previously been conducted for the same child,
they presented medical procedures and hospitalization costs as necessary expenses, when in fact they were covered by insurance providers,
they presented the cost of medical procedures or hospitalization as significantly higher than the actual amount and
announced that part of the donations would be allocated to financially support healthcare institutions, without, however, making the corresponding payments.
They caused the bank account of the mother of a child suffering from cancer to be frozen
A telling example is a case in which members of the organization, through various schemes, caused the closure of the bank account of the mother of a child suffering from cancer, who had chosen to collect donations independently of the association.
Specifically, after depositing a sum of money into her account, they filed a complaint with the bank alleging fraud and, subsequently, offered to help her, with the ultimate goal of steering her back toward conducting a fundraising campaign through the association.
At the same time, as part of the financial investigation conducted with the assistance of the Anti-Money Laundering Authority, -29- bank accounts and payment institution accounts in Greece and abroad, while more than -246,000- account transactions were analyzed.
5.8 million euros in the accounts of the NGO and a 37-year-old over an 8-year period
Analysis of the financial data revealed that, during the period 2018–2026, a total amount exceeding -5,800,000- euros was credited to the association’s accounts and the 37-year-old’s personal accounts. The total amount of cash collected through events and donation boxes at various locations across the country remains unclear, as well as whether these amounts were deposited into the relevant accounts or remained in cash.
The financial investigation revealed that the donated funds were deposited both into the association’s bank accounts and into the 37-year-old’s personal accounts via the IRIS service.
Subsequently, the funds that were not distributed to the families of the beneficiary children were either withdrawn and redeposited into the personal accounts of those involved, transferred between their accounts via interbank transfers, or usedto cover their personal expenses, or were channeled into accounts of shell companies under the guise of legitimate transactions.
The illicit proceeds enabled the organization’s members to lead a lavish lifestyle, as the financial investigation revealed, among other things, expenses for the purchase of luxury brand-name consumer goods, stays at luxury accommodations, meals at restaurants, as well as expenses related to a medical facility.
A complex mechanism for laundering and legitimizing illicit proceeds
Furthermore, it emerged that the members of the organization, acting according to a well-structured plan, had developed a complex mechanism for the movement and laundering of illicit proceeds, with the aim of giving the appearance of legitimacy to the criminally obtained funds and severing their connection to their original illegal source.
In this context, the members of the first subgroup engaged, among other things, in:
withdrawing and redepositing cash in order to make it difficult to trace its origin,
successively transferring funds between personal and corporate bank accounts,
the acquisition of movable property (such as cars and luxury consumer goods) without sufficient justification based on their declared income,
systematic participation in games of chance and online gambling, with the aim of presenting sums of money as winnings from legitimate betting companies,
the use of shell companies and the issuance of fictitious tax documents,
and the financing of soccer clubs through informal and off-the-books transactions.
The 37-year-old acted as a behind-the-scenes administrator and financier of a soccer team
For example, it was found that the 37-year-old had deposited more than -2,600,000- euros into betting accounts, while he had withdrawn more than 2,000,000 euros.
In addition, two shell companies and a shell sole proprietorship were identified, through which fictitious tax documents were issued in order to make the flows of illegal proceeds appear as legitimate corporate transactions. In total, -9- fictitious tax documents were identified, with a total value of -149,700- euros.
Furthermore, the investigation revealed that the 37-year-old, during the 2024–2025 season, while acting as a behind-the-scenes administrator and financier of a soccer club, placed 62 bets on matches involving that specific team, several of which were on the team’s loss, reaping profits in some cases.
The role of the second subgroup
As for the second subgroup, it emerged that it had been formed at least as early as September 2026 and consisted of 4 members (the 37-year-old from the first subgroup, as well as a 43-year-old, a 35-year-old, and a 38-year-old), who are alleged to have been involved in manipulating the results of soccer matches, with the aim, on the one hand, of favoring a specific amateur soccer team so that it could be promoted to the Third National Division and, on the other hand, of reaping illegal profits, by placing bets on rigged matches.
The investigation revealed that the activities of the second subgroup were financed by illegal proceeds from the first. At the same time, the 37-year-old allegedly allocated more than 250,000 euros to finance two soccer clubs, in which he acted as a behind-the-scenes administrator and financier.
The funding was carried out through informal, unofficial, and off-the-books transactions, with cash payments to athletes, coaching staff, and suppliers, without issuing the required tax documents.
As for their modus operandi, the members of the second subgroup sought to influence the outcome of soccer matches through monetary exchanges, with the aim of securing favorable refereeing treatment for a specific team.
Specifically, the investigation revealed that between the 37-year-old and two other members of the subgroup—who held key positions in the organization of soccer matches— an agreement had been reached to provide favorable treatment to that specific team during the current season.
In fact, one of the two members is alleged to have agreed, in exchange for a monetary payment ranging from -300- to -500- euros per match, to fix matches in favor of the aforementioned team, with particular emphasis on matches against its direct competitors for promotion.
The investigation also revealed a case in which a sum of -1,000- euros was paid to the two aforementioned members of the organization in order to improperly influence the outcome of a match in favor of the same team.
Finally, an investigation was conducted into a match in the U-19 soccer league, during which the 37-year-old, having received relevant information from another member of the second subgroup, placed live bets, reaping illegal profits, while also informing his friends so that they could place similar bets.
It should be noted that, according to the investigation’s findings to date, the teams participating in the specific match do not appear to have been involved in manipulating its outcome.
Searches conducted at residences and vehicles, as well as personal searches, among other measures, led to the discovery and seizure of:
-8- cell phones,
-2- laptops,
a computer central processing unit,
portable digital data storage devices,
numerous printed materials, documents, and handwritten notes,
-2- private vehicles, as proceeds of criminal activity,
-7- bags, and -2- wallets from designer fashion houses,
-3- watches from designer brands
, blank checkbooks—
14—checks totaling -169.395 euros
; a check worth -48,150- euros;
a private agreement for an interest-free loan in the amount of -52,000- euros; and
the cash sum of -18,330- euros.
As part of the police operation, the parents of 34 beneficiary children were located and questioned. A combined assessment of their statements and financial data revealed that, while the corresponding grant allocations totaled -3,940,692- euros, the families had received a total of approximately -1,111,176- euros, resulting in an illegal financial gain estimated at approximately -2,829,516- euros.
In addition, the Anti-Money Laundering Authority froze, on a case-by-case basis, bank and gambling accounts belonging to the 37-year-old man and the 35-year-old woman, as well as those of the association—an NGO—in Greece and abroad.
The arrested individuals are being brought before the competent prosecuting authority, while the investigation continues to determine the full extent of the organization’s criminal activity.
Prominent Names Among the Donors
Among the well-known donors were shipowner Maria Angelikousi, singer Nikos Oikonomopoulos, soccer player Tasos Hatzigiovanis, tennis champion Maria Sakkari, TV host Mary Synatsaki, and influencer Ioanna Tounis, among others.
Source: iefimerida.gr
