Upheaval in Greek showbiz has been caused by a major operation by the Greek FBI. This case involves a criminal network that illegally collected Value Added Tax refunds and according to information has managed to gain benefits worth 5 million euros. According to sources, a well-known presenter and producer is implicated, who has recently occupied state authorities numerous times for various incidents, following the revelation of a complex network that issued fake invoices from non-existent businesses. The scale of the scheme, in which the leading role is allegedly held by the president of an Athens football team at amateur level, reaches 20 million euros.
Regarding the illegal activity of the well-known producer and presenter, at least five documents worth 1.5 million euros have been issued in the name of an online magazine production company in which he holds shares. According to police sources, more than 350 transactions have been carried out, while according to the same information, at least 310 have been found to have never actually taken place. Sources from parapolitika.gr emphasize that 73 people are involved while 18 arrests have been made.
At the center are two brothers, one of whom maintains a shareholding relationship with a football team in Menidi, while his brother is a municipal employee. Additionally, approximately 500,000 euros in cash were located and confiscated during the investigations.
Greek FBI: How the criminal network involving the well-known presenter operated
According to journalistic sources, the gang had set up a network of non-existent businesses, those called shell companies in the market, which issued fake invoices. Value Added Tax (VAT) was never paid to the Greek state, resulting in the perpetrators “laundering“, according to police, income and expenses. The well-known TV presenter who has had problems with state financial authorities for several months, is alleged to be a key member of the network. He is the main recipient of these fictitious invoices, through which money exceeding 1.5 million euros appears to have been moved.
For months, officers from the Organized Crime Unit of Attica have been investigating the gang’s activities. They recorded the suspects’ movements, their transactions with each other, the invoices they issued and generally the suspicious activity they had developed. The officers realized that the shell companies were “recycling” huge amounts of money. They were legitimizing suspicious profits that have come under the authorities’ microscope through the fictitious companies. The person who is at the head of the gang is a known owner of a football team in Western Attica. He is the brother of the faction leader in the same municipality where the football team belongs and in the past, has not troubled the authorities.
Police so far have arrested accountants, people who had secondary roles in the gang and individuals who had dealings with the network. The investigation into the case is still in full progress with dozens of raids on homes and offices.
Further announcements are expected tomorrow, Wednesday, from officials of the Organized Crime Unit.
