PTSD diagnosis racket dismantled on Lesvos

Police on the eastern Aegean island of Lesvos have dismantled a racket that had been issuing fake PTSD diagnoses to migrants and refugees seeking asylum in Greece, it was announced on Thursday.

The racket is said to have consisted of one foreign national and four Greeks, among which a psychologist and two lawyers. Three suspects have already been arrested and warrants have been issued for the other two.

According to a press release, investigators have linked the racket to 538 cases so far and estimate that the gang demanded payment of between 550 and 950 euros for each diagnosis, which was issued by the psychologist, who is not entitled by law to do so.

The diagnoses allowed the migrants to apply for protection and economic assistance as “vulnerable individuals.”

Raids on the suspects’ homes and places of business turned up numerous computers and storage devices, documents, notes and more than 4,600 euros in cash.