Police probing activities of gun smuggling racket

Greek Police (ELAS) investigators are turning up new evidence on the activities of what appears to be a large gun smuggling network with links to Albania, following the arrest over the weekend of six suspects and the seizure of four Kalashnikov assault rifles and hundreds of rounds of ammunition on Crete.

The investigation is reportedly centered on a 59-year-old suspect from Rethymno who is believed to have been one of the key suppliers on the Greek island of illegal weapons, which were smuggled into Greece from Albania and then sent to Crete via ferryboat.

The suspect allegedly did business via a network of intermediaries in order to protect his identity, taking large orders that he would then convey to his Albanian contacts. ELAS investigators reportedly have evidence of him traveling to Albania on numerous occasions and spending several days there. The last of these trips was, reportedly, in July, according to the Creta Live website.

Officers are also looking closely into the activities of a 55-year-old suspect who owns grazing pastures on the Greek-Albanian border and is believed to have been part of the network bringing the guns into the country.