ATHENS, Feb. 20 – Eighteen people, 15 Greeks and 3 Albanians, from an organized crime network in large scale drug trafficking were arrested in an operation based in the cities of Arta and Preveza in northern Greece.
The network was mainly based in northern Greece and was involved on trafficking, distribution and shipping of narcotics.
Police said it arrested five of the group leaders two of which are Albanians. Police carried out house searches that resulted in the seizure of hundreds of kilograms of cannabis and heroin.
According to the Greek police, some of the people arrested had criminal records for similar offences. Officials have expressed concern about a boost in the drug trafficking organizations in the entire region that mostly deal with transports of huge amounts of marijuana grown in Albania.
According to police officials, the network is suspected to have made dozens of millions of euros in distribution of narcotics in Greece and abroad.
Only in January, Greek police officers seized 1.3 tons of marijuana and dozens of kilograms of heroin and cocaine. The drugs were seized during operations carried out in the border area between the two countries.
