Nancy, her brother and other relatives

The dilemma for the shopkeepers was clear: Either they would pay to have immunity from inspections or they would be forced to go to court every so often.

Employees of the local government and state agencies, in cooperation with a family business (like an exemplary public-private partnership), had formed an extortion ring that mainly targeted restaurants in Athens. The 43-year-old leader had the code name "Nancy." Co-protagonist in the gang was her brother, closely followed by their mother. Records of their phone conversations with their entire network demonstrate a mastered communication relationship, which used coded phrases and effective actions ("Did you scare him at all?") to accumulate thousands of euros.

The criminal ring of Attica is one major story - the mafia of Mykonos is another. The two are parallel stories, although the latter includes the murder of a...