Controllers from Greece's Independent Authority for Public Revenue (AADE) have found another 26.8 kilograms of cocaine hidden inside an unfinished building and an underground tunnel-like space in Marathon, northeast of Attica, in a case linked to a drug trafficking network dismantled on September 9.
The find came from AADE's DEOS financial crimes unit after it acted on information from the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). The tip pointed to cocaine stored in a space next to the residence where a large quantity of drugs had already been located and seized on September 9.
Investigators inspected neighbouring properties, warehouses and buildings under construction in the area, and located the 26.8 kilograms in a nearby unfinished building, known in Greek as a giapi. The building belonged to the same person who had rented the residence to the criminal organisation.
Link to the Rose Smuggling Case
According to the investigation, the newly found cocaine is part of an earlier shipment smuggled into Greece from Colombia using the same method the network had used before, concealing the drugs inside flower bouquets and artificial flowers.
AADE had announced on September 10 the seizure of a total of 84 kilograms of cocaine that had been hidden inside artificial roses, in an operation the authority named "Flowers of Evil."
AADE is Greece's tax and customs authority. Its DEOS unit works alongside police and prosecutors on cases of smuggling and organised financial crime, and it was this unit that carried out both the September 9 search and the follow-up inspections that led to the latest discovery.
Packaging Matched Earlier Seizure
The cocaine was found packaged in blocks and ready for distribution. It carried a marking identical to the one found on moulds and presses that had already been seized from members of the criminal organisation on September 9.
AADE said this marking was a feature linking the newly found quantity to the same criminal group. Investigators also recovered a hunting and survival-style knife with a 21-centimetre blade, along with bullets of various calibres.
Drugs Hidden in an Underground Tunnel
The locations chosen to hide the material also drew investigators' attention. Inside the building under construction, and in an uncovered part of the plot, they found a large underground water tank and an underground, tunnel-like space, referred to locally as a "lagoumi," where the seized items had been carefully concealed.
Owner Sought Abroad
A case file was opened against the owner of the building under construction. He lives abroad and is being sought by authorities.
DEOS investigators said their inquiries into the full extent of the network's activity, and into identifying everyone involved, are continuing.
Images From the Search
AADE released photographs of the newly discovered cocaine and the hiding places used by the network.
