Drug network via Telegram in Thessaloniki: three arrests, cryptocurrencies and minor victims
Three members of a drug trafficking network, aged 18, 25 and 30, were arrested in Thessaloniki by the DEOC teams of the AADE. The network used Telegram and cryptocurrencies, even approaching minors.
Dismantling of drug network via Telegram in Thessaloniki
Three members of an organised drug trafficking network were arrested in Thessaloniki by the DEOC teams of the AADE, according to Newsit.gr. During the operation, 3.5 kilograms of cannabis and 120 grammes of cocaine were seized.
The arrested individuals are aged 18, 25 and 30. According to the Hellenic Police, the network approached young people — including minors — via encrypted communication applications, primarily Telegram. Through the application, instructions for obtaining drugs were provided and payments were made in cryptocurrencies.
The network had an organised structure: its members had been assigned operational areas, they provided direct service to those requesting delivery, and they used concealment methods to avoid surveillance.
The operation was based on specialist analysis of the profiles of those involved. In the first phase, the 18-year-old was arrested, in whose possession 3.5 kilograms of cannabis were found. Subsequently, DEOC team members presented themselves as interested buyers — using the investigative infiltration procedure — and located and arrested the remaining two members, aged 25 and 30.
During searches of the arrestees' residences, equipment indicating organised trafficking was found: precision scales and a cryptocurrency payment device. The three defendants were referred to the competent prosecutor's office under the procedure of flagrante delicto.
The investigation continues with the aim of locating and dismantling the remaining cells of the organisation.
Source: Newsit.gr