The Sub-Directorate for the Prevention of Organized Crime of Northern Greece has dismantled a criminal group, whose members were allegedly active in illegal betting in the region of Kilkis, having managed to defraud two betting companies. In the framework of a police operation, which took place yesterday in various areas of Thessaloniki and Kilkis, five members of the group, aged 31 to 35 years old, were arrested, including the alleged leader of the group. The case file formed for – on occasion – criminal organisation, felony fraud, as well as violations of the legislation on gambling and money laundering, includes three more persons, who have been identified. Meanwhile, an additional 45 people have been charged in the same case for – in some cases – simple complicity, fraud, and violations of gaming laws.
As explained in a statement issued by the authorities today, the investigation of the case was preceded by the appropriate use of information, while the investigation that followed revealed that the criminal group seems to have been active, at least since November 2025, having a structured hierarchy, distinct roles and continuous action. In particular, one of the men, aged 31, was alleged to have had a managerial role in the criminal organisation and to have illegally used, “professionally and repeatedly, third party gambling accounts, which were recruited by the other members of the organisation”. Then, by following the development of sporting events in real time, he would identify – on the basis of his personal judgement or through a special application – incorrect betting odds (‘trader errors’ or ‘off prices’) offered by betting companies and place bets on these odds, using multiple third-party player accounts at the same time.
How the organization works
The purpose of the above methodology was to take advantage of the early cashout feature provided by betting companies when odds change during the match, and to receive a sign-up bonus, which he used as additional capital for the illegal betting, as well as ensuring continued player activity, even when the betting accounts he was using were deactivated by the companies if they detected unusual activity.
The other members of the group were allegedly mainly responsible for the recruitment of third parties, who would grant the organisation their existing betting accounts to serve its illegal activities, while in cases where they did not have such accounts, they would persuade them to create new ones and then grant them.
At the same time, one of the arrested men, the owner of a communications equipment business, supplied the alleged leader of the group with mobile phones and SIM cards, which were used to prevent the betting companies from detecting the activity, while these devices were kept in the man’s home.
More specifically, following the agreement with the third parties for the allocation of the betting accounts, the alleged leader of the group “deposited sums of money into the bank account of the third party beneficiary of the betting account as initial capital for the placement of the bets. The funds were then transferred to the respective gambling accounts and used to place bets. In return, the third persons received either a percentage of the profits or a one-off cash fee, and the resulting profits were handed over to the organisation’s director, either directly or through the members who had recruited them.”
Earnings 170.000 in about six months
The group’s profits from the illegal activity, as of December 2025, are estimated to exceed 170.000 euros, according to the statement. From the parallel financial investigation conducted, it was found that the illegal activity of the alleged leader of the organization, began in 2023, when it was found an unusually increased flow of credits to his bank account from numerous accounts of third parties, with the total amount of these credits until 2025, to exceed 66,000 euros. According to the police, “it was also found that the man was also found to have joined another criminal group as a member, which allegedly operated two unlicensed betting websites in Greece.” Specifically, the man allegedly located prospective players, to whom he provided access to the website, profiting from the bets that did not yield a profit, while also reimbursing the players for any winnings, essentially operating as a betting company.
In searches carried out at homes and a shop, 15 mobile phones, including more than 8, were found and seized.130 euros, a laptop computer, 31 SIM cards, handwritten notes, a bank card, delivery notes, sales invoices and a topbox device. The arrested persons were taken to the relevant prosecution authority.
