Auction houses implicated in artifact racket

Police in Patra, western Greece, investigating the activities of a large racket believed to have been illegally trading in ancient artifacts suspect that representatives of four foreign auction houses were involved in the illicit transactions.

The value of the artifacts sold by the racket, which according to sources are of “inestimable cultural significance,” is estimated at more than 650,000 euros.

Greek judicial authorities have asked their counterparts in Germany, Austria, the UK and Bulgaria for information about suspected members of the racket.