A special anti-crime Greek Police (EL.AS) unit is conducting searches and inspections on Mykonos, the well-known jet-setting Cyclades Island, as part of a wider investigation into organized crime activities ostensibly emanating, in part, from the popular and increasingly pricy tourist destination.
The operation comes after an order this month by Supreme Court chief prosecutor Georgia Adilini towards law enforcement and judicial authorities to investigate instances of organized crime activity, such as money laundering, protection rackets, homicides, drug dealing and patterns of racketeering – all linked with the island.
The latest scrutiny over organized crime came in the wake of the gangland-style assassination of a 54-year-old land developer and surveyor earlier this month in the Athens district of Neo Psychiko. One man has been arrested in connection with the slaying, which featured all the hallmarks of a contract killing.
Mykonos has emerged as one of the Mediterranean’s premier summer destinations over the past decades, attracting hordes of visitors, including the super rich and international celebrities. On the “down side”, the surging revenues and the presence of well-heeled and party-going visitors have also attracted criminals of all types and the emergence of organized crime activities.
A video by a local media outlet shows law enforcement activity on the holiday island:
