Greek police dismantle migrant smuggling ring, 10 arrested, 750,000 euros in profits

Ring dismantled across two prefectures

Hellenic Police (ΕΛ.ΑΣ.) announced the breakup of a multi-member criminal group that smuggled migrants for payment, active since at least June 2025. The operation was run by officers of the Migration Management Department of the Thessaloniki Aliens Directorate, under the National Operations Plan and the EMPACT 2.2 EAST MED programme of the European Union's policy cycle against organised crime. Europol worked alongside the force, with support from investigators in Igoumenitsa and from the unmanned aircraft office of the Thessaloniki General Police Directorate. The inquiry found 41 cases in which more than 500 migrants were transported, and police put the group's illegal profit at no less than 750,000 euros. Simultaneous raids in Thesprotia and Thessaloniki took place in the early morning hours of 5 November 2026.

Ten arrests and a second group

Ten people were arrested, nine in Sagiada in Thesprotia and one in Thessaloniki. The group includes two 22-year-old Syrian men, a 33-year-old Albanian woman, five Greek men and two Greek women aged 38 and 40. A 26-year-old Syrian accomplice is already held in pretrial custody. Police also identified the details of a 23-year-old leader of a second criminal organisation, in which four of the ten arrested had taken part, and that material was added to the case file. The ten arrested are to be brought before the judicial authority in Thesprotia.

Sagiada, Thesprotia9

Thessaloniki1

Sagiada, Thesprotia

9

Thessaloniki

1

Data from the article text

How the network worked

According to the police inquiry, migrants from Nepal, Yemen and China were brought on foot through steep mountain paths from Albania, with Thesprotia as their first stop in Greece. Members arranged temporary stays in lodgings or makeshift tents and sold food, water and SIM cards at inflated prices. From there, intercity buses carried the migrants mainly to Athens and Patras, and in some cases abroad. Police said many were sent to farm work in the Peloponnese without legal procedures, and organisers kept their passports as security for debts to be repaid through labour. The group coordinated through a closed network of messaging apps, sharing information about police movements to avoid detection. Leaders and coordinators operated inside and outside Greece, while a support cell in a border area of Thesprotia provided services for a fee.

Searches and the wider case

Searches of three houses and one shop turned up three cars, mobile phones and electronic devices, 1,150 euros and four passports. Separately, police arrested 21 foreigners who lacked legal residence documents. Five of them were found at the house of an alleged member, where they lived and worked unlawfully in the group's operation. The case file now includes the material gathered on the 23-year-old leader. Europol's involvement and the EMPACT framework form the basis of the wider investigation. The suspects are to be referred to the judicial authority in Thesprotia.