File photo.
Police investigating the April 24, 2025, killing of alleged underworld figure Giorgos Moschouris in Halandri, northern Athens, said they found an unexpected item inside his armored BMW: a case file on the unsolved murder of journalist Giorgos Karaivaz in 2021.
Authorities on Thursday announced arrests and charges against five people linked to Moschouris’ killing, describing the suspects as hardened criminals.
One is already in prison in a kidnapping case, while another was described by police as “a man of Giannis Lalas,” who was killed months ago at a hotel on Mount Parnassos.
Investigators said the same group is tied to a bombing at a car dealership in Nea Erythraia, also in the city’s north, where Moschouris bought the armored BMW and reportedly had friendly relations with the owner.
Police had viewed the bombing as a warning directed at Moschouris. The suspects are also accused of monitoring the lawyer of convicted criminal Panagiotis Vlastos with surveillance devices placed at her home and in her car.
Police linked Moschouris’ killing to a struggle for control of protection rackets and cigarette and fuel smuggling connected to organized crime networks. Police said investigators identified the suspects by combining security camera footage, eyewitness testimony and other evidence gathered during the inquiry into Moschouris.