A joint operation between the Greek Police, the Greek Guard, UK and International Agencies involved in fighting International Organised Crime and Immigration Enforcement, achieved a total of eighteen arrests on Friday, 3rd March.
Over one hundred refugees, including women and children, were discovered in hiding and in appalling conditions in caves and derelict farm buildings in the area of Tsoutsoura, on the south coast of the Prefecture of Heraklion.
According to their statements, the refugees had paid amounts of between 2,000 and 4,000 euros each for the journey from Athens to Crete and then on to Italy.
The smugglers are believed to be part of a huge network, which aims to facilitate, for a fee, the illegal passage of migrants who are trapped in Greece who want to make their way to other Countries of Northern Europe.
The different International Organisations and Agencies worked in close cooperation, sharing intelligence and resources, to put a stop to the manipulation of these people in their misery.
Apart from photographs released, which show the conditions in which the refugee were being kept until they continued their planned journey, the authorities also showed the range of weaponry retrieved, along with other items used by the traffickers.
The refugees are now being taken care of in Heraklion, until a more permanent solution can be arranged for their accommodation.