Over the last two days there has been a huge joint operation between the Police and the Coast Guard in progress, with epicentre the southern coastal village of Tsoutsoura, Heraklion, for the purpose of breaking up an international trafficking gang, who illegally bring in and move forward, refugees through Crete.
The case has been under investigation for some time, in an effort to catch, possibly even the leaders of the criminal organisation, in the act.
It is considered to be an extremely dangerous operation and taking part are highly trained members of the Special Forces of the Police and the other armed services. They are all working under the guidance and coordination of a team from the Prosecution for Organised Crime, who have been following the trail left by the traffickers for several months.
According to information available, during the course of the night and up until now, there have been eleven arrests of traffickers and of at least one hundred refugees. The authorities had set up an impenetrable net across the area where they had been led to believe that that traffickers were active.
In the next few days, the names of those involved in the illegal trafficking network, are expected to be announced, as this impressive operation comes to a close. The Police are keeping very quiet with regard to developments as they must ensure the safety of the officers taking part, until it reaches it’s conclusion.