A hefty report prepared by officials in the Hellenic Police’s Organized Crime Division sheds light on the activities of a criminal syndicate, mostly made up of ethnic Greeks from Russia, but also two Ukrainians, one a former security official, and a Russian, apparently the designated hitman, or one of several.
The criminal gang has made most of its money by selling contraband cigarettes. It also runs a number of shell companies for the purpose of money laundering and owns several companies selling industrial-grade washing machines, two of them in Greece.
A key member of the gang is a man known as “Serhiy the accountant” based in Odessa, Ukraine, who has played a key role in setting up shell companies, circulating the proceeds from the gang’s sales and, in general, advising on finances. Some of the money is deposited in Russian banks and some moves through an informal, trust-based network.
Serhiy also represents a washing machine trading company founded in Ukraine by his 44-year-old compatriot Andriy, a former head of the Main Department of Internal Security at Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU), who was dismissed in the early 2020s for corruption. He is believed to be currently living in Greece.
