How the Roma gang broke into over 120 houses in Athens

During the operations, 14 members of the criminal organization were arrested, 3 more people were arrested for violations of the Arms Act and 23 arrests were made. Two of the arrested are said to have participated in the shooting incident at a porter in Peristeri in the early hours of September 8. The police, in more than 20 searches of houses and places where stolen goods were stored, found 4,500 euros, stolen goods, small amounts of drugs, pistols, revolvers, shotguns and a large number of cartridges. The officers of the Athens Security Sub-Directorate have identified 110 cases of burglaries, however, according to police estimates, the number is much higher, possibly double.

A case file was filed against them for the -as the case may be- crimes of the gang, whose members commit completed and attempted thefts from houses, by profession and by habit, by complicity and by follow-up, with the pursuit of the financial benefit of Law on Drugs and Law on Weapons.

At the same time, as part of the operation, additional -9- arrests of people were made for the -as the case may be- offenses of intimidation, verbal abuse, refusal to be fingerprinted, disrupting the operation of a service and for violating the laws on weapons and drugs. In fact, an arrest warrant was pending against -2- of those arrested, for their involvement in a shooting incident at a health facility in Western Attica.

According to EL.AS., from the preliminary investigation that was carried out and the appropriate utilization of information, the action of a structured group was determined, the members of which operated in two operational sub-groups, with a different composition each time, with main activity in the area of ​​Ilioupoli and with main objective is to commit thefts in homes by removing sums of money and electronic devices, with the aim of illegal financial gain.

As it emerged from the police investigation, the members of the gang operated with a specific mode of action (modus operandi), as follows:

• they kept an eye on their prospective target and made sure that the occupant was absent during their action,
• carefully planned their route of approach and escape, as they wanted not to be noticed,
• their “business” vehicles were mainly rented, with -2- members of the gang acting as “intermediaries” making it difficult for the authorities to locate the other “business” members,
• they were looking for easily accessible houses, which were either on the ground floor or on the 1st floor^the floor, thus ensuring that their goal will be achieved and
• they always used gloves and acted with their facial features covered, likely to make the work of the judicial and police authorities difficult.

In fact, the members of the gang had a heavy criminal past and years of experience in committing burglaries in the way of breaking aluminum doors and balcony doors, while when carrying out these they almost always had a four-member composition and distinct roles, even if they carried out them by changing their members , the roles remained the same.

From the further investigation – preliminary investigation, the identification of fingerprints by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations, analysis of video material and other investigative methods, the involvement of the gang was certified and -121- thefts from inside apartments were discovered, specifically:

• -92- thefts from houses in the area of ​​Ilioupoli,
• -4- thefts from houses in the area of ​​Alimos,
• -3- thefts from houses in the area of ​​Glyfada,
• -3- thefts from houses in the region of Viotia,
• -2- thefts from houses in the area of ​​Peristeri,
• -2- thefts from houses in the area of ​​Keratsini,
• -2- thefts from houses in the area of ​​Agia Paraskevi,
• -2- thefts from houses in the area of ​​Haidari,
• -2- thefts from houses in the area of ​​Moschatos – Tavros,
• -1- theft from a house in the area of ​​Kallithea,
• -1- theft from a house in the area of ​​Agios Dimitrios,
• -1- theft from a house in the area of ​​Ilio,
• -1- theft from a house in the area of ​​Agia Varvara,
• -1- theft from a house in the area of ​​Kifissia,
• -1- theft from a house in the area of ​​Nea Erythraia,
• -1- theft from a house in the area of ​​Dafni,
• -1- theft from a house in the area of ​​Piraeus and
• -1- theft from a house in the area of ​​Neos Faliros.

It is estimated that the total financial benefit from the gang’s action amounts to -367,125- euros.

In total, from the searches carried out in houses and other places where stolen goods were stored, the following were found – among others – and confiscated:

• -39- mobile phones,
• -6- weapons,
• -287- cartridges,
• -5- grams of possibly the narcotic substance cannabis,
• -3- scales,
• -3- tablets
• -1- camera,
• -2- folding knives,
• -1- electronic skate,
• -1- collapsible metal rod (glob),
• -1- hemp grater, with residues thereof,
• -3- motorcycles and
• -7- I.X. cars,
• a multitude of valuables (watches, rings, earrings, necklaces, bracelets, etc.) and
• -4,087- euros.

The arrested were taken to the competent Prosecutor, while the investigation continues both to ascertain the full scope of the criminal gang’s activities and to identify the others involved.