The members of the drug trafficking ring dismantled in Mykonos had developed an entire “dictionary” of code words, in an attempt to keep their real activities hidden from anyone who might be listening in on their phone conversations. The revealing dialogues contained in the case file expose how the criminal organization operated — its members were extremely cautious when speaking on the phone. Their conversations were typically brief, they avoided any direct references to drugs, and they used a rotating code system that changed depending on the substance being discussed.
Read also: Mykonos Drug Trafficking Ring: Drivers “Fished” for Customers Among Tourists, Nine Arrests — The Role of the 35-Year-Old Alleged Ringleader (Images & Video)
“Lahmacun,” “pink garnish,” “colorful,” and “secret recipe” were among the expressions that, according to the investigation, the ring members used when referring to so-called “pink cocaine.” For regular cocaine, they used terms such as “classic,” “eggs,” “girls,” “people,” “babies,” and “cats,” while raw cannabis was referred to as “Jenny” and MDMA as “the lady.”
Mykonos drug ring: How the members communicated
When conversations involved drug quantities or sums of money, the members would often limit themselves to using numbers alone. Their caution was so extreme that if anyone deviated from the agreed code, the call could be cut off immediately. A particularly prominent term in their vocabulary was “the pretty boy” — a code name used, according to investigative evidence, to refer to police officers.
“Our girls want the secret recipe” — “The lahmacun one?”
One conversation perfectly illustrates how the ring disguised its dealings behind seemingly innocent words. It took place between the alleged ringleader and one of the peripheral members who worked as a transfer driver.
The driver calls the ringleader and tells him that some “friends” are interested in the “secret recipe.” The ringleader’s response is telling: he asks for clarification on whether he means the “lahmacun” one. According to the investigation, both expressions were code for pink cocaine.
The conversation follows:
Peripheral Member – Transfer Driver: Everything’s good.
Ringleader: Everything’s good?
Peripheral Member – Transfer Driver: Um… what was it I wanted to tell you?
Ringleader: What?
Peripheral Member – Transfer Driver: Hey man, our girls here want the secret recipe.
Ringleader: The lahmacun one?
Peripheral Member – Transfer Driver: Yes.
Ringleader: Tell them to call Chris.
Peripheral Member – Transfer Driver: OK.
“Things have gotten rough out there”
A separate conversation reveals the alleged ringleader’s growing anxiety about the presence of law enforcement on Mykonos and his efforts to tie up loose ends. The exchange begins with what appears to be an unrelated topic — a €10,000 invoice for a car — before quickly shifting in tone.
The ringleader mentions that he has already sent “what needed to be sent,” while the other person responds that he will collect “his share” the following evening. The ringleader appears impatient and asks for the handover to happen sooner, explaining that his mother is coming and leaving the same day from the port.
It is at this point that he openly voices his concern: “Things have gotten rough out there. Don’t you hear? Don’t you see?”
The relevant dialogue follows:
Ringleader: Hey… I issued a €10,000 invoice. OK?
Peripheral Member – Transfer Driver: For the car?
Ringleader: Yes.
Peripheral Member – Transfer Driver: Good Lord! Why so much?
Ringleader: Because that’s what it cost me, man, there’s no way around it. What can we do? Should I just take the loss?! And go to prison on top of it?
Peripheral Member – Transfer Driver: At worst we sell it ourselves and… break even.
[…]
Peripheral Member – Transfer Driver: So did you sort it out?
Ringleader: I sent what needed to be sent. What needed to be sent. I sent it.
Peripheral Member – Transfer Driver: Tomorrow night you’ll get yours.
Ringleader: I was thinking maybe I could get it today, man, because my mother is coming.
Peripheral Member – Transfer Driver: So what? When is she leaving?
Ringleader: Same day. Right now, at the port. Straight away.
Peripheral Member – Transfer Driver: Are you serious?
Ringleader: Things have gotten rough out there. Don’t you hear? Don’t you see?
Peripheral Member – Transfer Driver: Yeah. So what?
Ringleader: At least if things go sideways, at least… make sure it’s not (inaudible).
Peripheral Member – Transfer Driver: Yeah.
Ringleader: Can you swing by at some point now, right now? To the house for a bit?
Peripheral Member – Transfer Driver: I don’t have all of it, bro. I can give you three. One’s missing. Then. You can send them back to me…
“They’re out there in uniform” — Monitoring police checkpoints
Even more revealing is a conversation in which the alleged ringleader updates another member about the checks being carried out across the island. The ringleader appears to have detailed knowledge that uniformed officers are stopping motorbikes, warns his contact to have all the necessary documents in order, and specifically flags routes near the port and airport as high-risk. The exchange reveals that the members weren’t simply tracking where checkpoints were being set up — they were also exchanging physical descriptions of individuals they suspected of being plainclothes officers, so they could recognize and avoid them. They even go so far as to say it would be preferable to run those officers over rather than stop for a check.
The relevant dialogue follows:
Trafficker – Transfer Driver: Tell me, what do we do now? What do we do?
Ringleader: Hey man, listen — the others are out there in uniform.
Trafficker – Transfer Driver: Yeah.
Ringleader: And they’re stopping motorbikes, generally acting like they’re…
Trafficker – Transfer Driver: Traffic cops.
Ringleader: Traffic cops for now, but still — make sure you have your voucher, make sure everything’s in order.
Trafficker – Transfer Driver: Of course, man.
Ringleader: And when you’re dropping off at ports and airports, it’s very dangerous right now — over the next two days SDOE will be out, everything’s deployed these two days. And there are some dirty ones — one of them, they say, you’d look at him and think he’s just some random guy wandering around on his own.
Trafficker – Transfer Driver: Yeah.
Ringleader: And two women. One guy, slightly stocky they say, and two women — SDOE. Those ones mess everything up, they open everything. All around forty, the three of them. Watch yourself.
Trafficker – Transfer Driver: Yeah, yeah. Better to run them over than let them signal you to stop.
