Police in northern Greece said on Sunday that they had broken up an “extremely well organized” gang of Bulgarian fraudsters who are believed to have swindled thousands of euros from unsuspecting bank customers by copying their bank card details using devices installed at bank ATMs.

Officers arrested four of the suspects in the northern region of Halkidiki on Sunday and the fifth suspect was subsequently apprehended in Blagoevgrad in southwestern Bulgaria. “This was an extremely well-organized ring that has been operating in Greece for a long time,” said Serres police chief Nikolaos Rizos. Apart from Greek bank customers, many tourists – chiefly Italians – are believed to have fallen victim to the ring. “This type of crime has taken up a lot of police time recently, so the breakup of the ring is a real success for both police forces,” said the chief inspector for northern Greece, Stergios Apostolides.