He even used dead people as “front men” by the tax evasion ring operating in Thessaloniki and Athens, as 12 individuals named in the case file appear to have passed away. The messages exchanged by those involved are also revealing, as they detail their modus operandi.
Specifically, among the front men listed in the case file forwarded yesterday to the criminal prosecution office, it appears that all 12 were deceased.
ΣΧΕΤΙΚΑ ΑΡΘΡΑ
In fact, investigations revealed that some had passed away in 2023, yet invoices and receipts continued to be issued in their names, as authorized representatives were appointed—even to entities established after their deaths.
It should be noted that, according to an announcement by the Independent Authority for Public Revenue, the investigation involves more than 700 business locations, both in Thessaloniki and Chalkidiki, as well as in other regions of the country.
In recent years, more than 2,000 businesses in the restaurant and nightlife sectors have operated at these locations, involving 1,300 “straw men” and 700 individuals operating under false identities, with debts to the State and the EFKA exceeding 200 million euros in the last three years alone.
Even waiters were listed as managers
The majority of them were low-wage workers in restaurants and nightclubs, while waiters and dishwashers are still listed as company managers—some without even knowing it. One person took legal action for precisely this reason.
It appears that four networks had been set up in Thessaloniki, controlling dozens of stores that were raking in profits while defaulting on taxes and social security contributions.
The case file includes a total of 1,283 defendants, who will be summoned in stages to provide explanations; in fact, it is not out of the question that arrest warrants could even be issued for some as early as next week, according to information reported by ANT1 Greece.
The “corporate carousel” scheme
According to the findings of the Independent Authority for Public Revenue (AADE), some of Thessaloniki’s most popular nightspots changed their tax identification numbers by employing the “corporate carousel” method.
The actual owners leased prime properties—either individually or through shell real estate agencies they controlled themselves. Then, through a series of subleases, they set up shell companies with straw managers to run the stores.
The stores issued receipts as required and registered their staff to avoid the risk of being shut down during on-site inspections, but they never paid a single euro in value-added tax, income tax, or EFKA contributions.
As debts accumulated under a single tax ID number, the company would go into liquidation, the sublease was terminated, and a new tax ID number was “created” at the same location under a different front man, within a few hours.
“Don’t use it; there’s a problem.”
The messages exchanged by the ring’s members are also highly revealing.
“Good morning, I’m setting up the new one with the pizzeria; if you can, verify the ID on gov.wallet so they don’t have to make video calls with the delivery platforms. They accept her ID when it’s verified,” reads one of the messages between those involved.
“Good evening, and I’m sorry. Don’t use it—there’s a problem. We’ll talk tomorrow; I’ll send you another one,” one of the ring members reportedly says, while another replies, “I was going to do it this morning—you caught me just in time.”
Serious Charges
Among those arrested are well-known nightlife entrepreneurs, owners of dozens of highly popular bars and nightclubs in Thessaloniki and Chalkidiki.
Yesterday (November 7), the prosecutor filed criminal charges against the arrested individuals for very serious offenses, including the formation, leading and participating in a criminal organization, fraud against the government as a felony, forgery, also a felony, and the laundering of proceeds from criminal activities on a continuous and professional basis.
Within the coming week, they will be summoned to answer for the charges against them before the 3rd Special Investigating Judge of Thessaloniki, who, together with the competent prosecutor, will decide on their pretrial detention until their trial, that is, whether some of them will remain in custody until then or will be released, most likely under restrictive conditions.
During yesterday’s proceedings, two of the 18 people arrested were released, as their arrests were related to violations of gun laws, and their cases are currently in the preliminary investigation stage.
Source: cnn.gr
