Police arrest man in large heroin haul in northern Greece

Greek police seized a haul of more than 50 kilograms of pure cocaine and arrested one man in the northern region of Pieria on Sunday.

The 31-year-old suspect was arrested at the tolls of Aiginio, on the national Athens-Thessaloniki highway on Sunday, when he “strongly resisted” an inspection of his car by officers of Thessaloniki’s anti-drug unit.

Searching the confiscated car, officers found 98 paper packages containing 51 kilos and 345 grams of pure heroin.

Authorities believe the man, an ethnic Greek from Georgia, is an important member of an international drug-trafficking ring which imported and sold drugs in the country, whose role was to “receive, transport and deliver” quantities of heroin.

They said that he planned to mix the cocaine with other substances and sell it in Greece and other markets. It would have had a street value of eight million euros. 

The suspect will be led before a prosecutor on Monday to face charges of violating laws on addictive Substances and resisting arrest.

The police operation was organised after authorities received a tip about a large quantity of drugs heading to Athens.