€85,000 fraud against elderly man in Chalcidice – two arrested
Two men were arrested on 5 July 2026 after attempting to obtain €85,000 from an elderly man in Chalcidice by impersonating a doctor and a police officer.
Telephone fraud gang operated in Chalcidice and Thesprotia
Two men were arrested on 5 July 2026 following an attempted telephone fraud against an elderly man in Chalcidice, according to ERT. The arrest was carried out by police officers from Kallicrateia Police Department in cooperation with the Crime Prevention and Suppression Unit and Moudan Police Department.
At midday on the same day, a member of the gang telephoned the elderly man, posing as a doctor. He informed him that his daughter had suffered serious injuries in a road accident and demanded €85,000 for an allegedly urgent surgical operation. A female accomplice pretended to be the daughter herself on the telephone in order to strengthen the credibility of the fraud.
In a second call, another accomplice presented himself as a police officer and claimed that the authorities had already been informed of the attempted fraud. He asked the elderly man to place the money outside his house, ostensibly for the arrest of the perpetrators. The gang failed to complete the criminal act.
Following immediate mobilisation, police officers located and arrested a foreign man at the moment he was collecting the money. From his possession, the €85,000 were seized – which were immediately returned to the elderly man – as well as €1,000, a mobile telephone, and a vehicle in his ownership.
Later the same day, officers from Moudan Police Department arrested a Greek man in Thessaloniki as an accomplice. Investigation revealed that he had committed a similar fraud on 2 July 2026 in the Thesprotia region, taking watches, jewellery, and foreign currency notes from an elderly woman. Items were seized from his possession, as well as a mobile telephone and a vehicle.
The two arrested men will be brought before the District Prosecutor of Chalcidice. Investigation is continuing for the identification of the remaining accomplices and their possible involvement in other similar cases.
The General Regional Police Directorate of Central Macedonia is advising citizens not to trust unknown callers impersonating medical or police personnel, not to disclose whether they have money or valuables at home, and to inform police immediately even in cases of attempted fraud.
Source: ERT