The Directorate for Combating Organised Crime on Friday announced the dismantling of a criminal organisation involved in telephone scams and aggravated thefts, using, among other methods, artificial intelligence tools to clone voices.
Two men, aged 23 and 25, were arrested during a police operation in Nea Ionia. They are alleged to have acted as the organisation’s “collectors” and were located shortly after allegedly removing valuables worth around € 30,000 from a home. Four other people are included in the case file, three of whom have been identified.
According to the Hellenic Police, the organisation had clearly defined roles, with “callers” identifying and approaching potential victims, while other members collected money and valuables.
The suspects claimed to be employees of the Independent Power Transmission Operator (IPTO), mobile phone companies or fibre-optic providers. When victims expressed doubts, the suspects obtained a voice sample from a relative or person close to them and used artificial intelligence to clone the voice, creating the impression that the victim was speaking to that person.
The group has so far been linked to five additional similar cases, while police also solved the theft of a vehicle on September 14, which the suspects allegedly used as a “getaway vehicle”.
According to the Hellenic Police, the organisation’s illicit proceeds exceeded € 1 million.
