Anabolic steroids network in Attica: a policeman among those detained, a doctor and two other employees are involved in the case

A network has been uncovered in Attica illegal trade in anabolic steroids: three people were detained including active police officer, More than 111 thousand tablets were seized.

The operation was performed Internal Investigation Service of Law Enforcement Agencies on the morning of July 9 in several areas of Attica. Another alleged participant, a foreign citizen, is outside Greece and is wanted.

According to ERT citing Greek policethe organization was engaged in the import, storage and sale of anabolic substances and pharmaceuticals without the necessary permission.

Police officers and doctor: what exactly is known

One active police officer is considered a member of the main core of the organization and is among three detained.

In addition, the case materials also include 11 peopleaccused of separate episodes. Among them:

• two other police officers;
• government hospital doctor;
• eight more alleged participants in separate illegal activities.

The investigation emphasizes that these 11 people are not accused of participating in the central structure of a criminal organization. Their specific roles and connections to individual operations remain to be established by the investigator and the court.

How the network worked

According to the police, the organization operated for at least August 2025. The foreign participant ensured the supply of drugs from abroad and, together with one of the detainees, controlled the warehouse premises.

Further distribution was carried out by a police officer and a female accomplice. According to the investigation, they:

• created our own client network;
• advertised and offered drugs to customers;
• provided instructions for their use;
• accepted and distributed the money received;
• organized personal meetings and mailings.

Payments were made through bank accounts and instant money transfer applications. This left a digital trail that will now likely tell investigators more than the voluntary explanations of the accused.

After the Europol operation they changed suppliers

In May 2026, network members, according to police, learned of an international operation against the trade in counterfeit medicines and nutritional supplements, carried out in coordination Europol.

After this, they allegedly strengthened anti-surveillance measures and began looking for new sources of supply, but did not stop trading.

This is not the first major market for illicit drugs to be discovered in Greece. Previously “Athens News” talked about a criminal groupwhich has been producing and supplying anabolic steroids to athletes in Greece and abroad for almost ten years.

What was discovered during searches

• 111,720 tablets anabolic substances;
• 7,985 bottles with anabolic drugs;
• 8,346 bottles bacteriostatic water for the preparation of injections;
• special shooting device and 10 blank cartridges;
• four stun grenades;
• three smoke grenades with CS substance;
• small quantities of cocaine and unprocessed cannabis.

Where do anabolic steroid dealers get police special equipment?

Particular attention was drawn not only to the volumes of anabolic steroids, but also to four flash-noise grenades, three grenades with a CS irritant, a special firing device and blank cartridges discovered during searches.

These are not household self-defense products or items that are legally purchased for private use. Such equipment is used by the police, military and other authorized structures, and its storage and transfer are under strict control.

It has not yet been proven that the seized devices came directly from stockpiles ΕΛ.ΑΣ. They may have been smuggled, purchased on the black market, or obtained through another diversion. However, the participation of an active police officer in the core of the organization makes the version of the official origin of special equipment a completely logical direction for verification.

The investigation needs to establish:

• in which room and on which defendant were the grenades found;
• who is their manufacturer and what are the batch numbers;
• whether such shipments were purchased by the Greek police or military;
• whether the devices were listed as lost, written off, or used in training exercises;
• which employees had access to them;
• whether they were intended to protect warehouses, intimidate, counter police or further sale.

If it turns out that special equipment was taken from police reserves and transferred to a criminal organization, we will no longer be talking only about the illegal trade in anabolic steroids. There will be a separate question about theft of state property, illegal transfer of weapons and supply of police special equipment to the criminal network.

Police note that the value of the seized anabolic steroids and pharmaceuticals is estimated at approximately 500 thousand euros. We are talking specifically about the approximate market value of the product, and not about the proven amount of profit of the network.

The charges include, depending on the role of each defendant, participation in a criminal organization, violation of anti-doping and pharmaceutical laws, as well as weapons and drug offenses.

Editorial comment

Particularly alarming is not only the volume of drugs seized, but also the alleged presence of people associated with the police and state medicine. Such individuals potentially have professional knowledge, access to information and customer trust that the average street vendor does not have.

However, a boundary must be observed here: one police officer is accused of participating in the organization itself, while two other employees and a doctor are facing separate charges. To turn them all into a single criminal leadership before the investigation is completed would not be an analysis, but an early sentencing.

There are two sides to this story, and both cannot be ignored. On the one hand, regular arrests of police officers show that the Internal Investigation Service is really working and is ready to deal with people in uniform, and not just civilian criminals.

On the other hand, the number of such cases is already alarming. In 2026, police officers were involved in investigations about cigarette smuggling, fraud and money laundering in Rhodesas well as in Athens cocaine distribution network. Now a case of illegal trade in anabolic steroids has been added to this list.

Each individual case does not prove systemic corruption of the entire police force. But the repetition of such episodes shows that criminal structures are trying to get inside ΕΛ.ΑΣ. people who can check databases, alert about investigations, transmit proprietary information or provide protection for illegal businesses.

Therefore, not only another arrest should be considered a success. It is important to see how such cases end: how many employees are suspended from service, how many charges go to court, what property is confiscated and what measures are taken to prevent the next “insider” from taking the vacant position.

The good news is that corrupt police officers are being identified. The bad news is that they have to be identified more and more often. When a lawmaker becomes part of a criminal network, criminals gain not just an accomplice, but access to the very system that is supposed to persecute them.

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