Bribery

A sprawling corruption ring in the urban planning offices of Halkidiki in northern Greece has been dismantled, according to police on Tuesday, following a months-long investigation that uncovered extensive bribery for approving illegal constructions.

A municipal engineer who accepted a 10,000-euro kickback in return for issuing a building progress report has been handed a three-year suspended sentence by a Thessaloniki court.

The court found him guilty of bribery but acquitted him on another charge of attempted extortion. It also accepted his lack of a prior criminal record as a mitigating factor. 

A doctor at a public hospital in Thessaloniki in northern Greece has been handed a 10-month suspended prison sentence for accepting bribes from patients. The Three-Member Misdemeanor Court of Thessaloniki found him guilty of bribery, with the court recognizing his previously clean record as a mitigating factor.

A Thessaloniki criminal court has acquitted 17 former patients and their relatives on charges of paying bribes to a cardiologist.

A staggering nine out of 10 Greeks believe there is extensive corruption in the country's National Health System (ESY), according to the special Eurobarometer that surveyed citizens from February 7 to March 3 regarding corruption in the European Union.

A total of 1,002 Greek citizens and 26,411 people from the countries of the European Union participated.

The trial of an employee at the Single Social Security Entity (EFKA) accused of bribery has been deferred to November 14 after appearing in an Athens court on Saturday. 

The 49-year-old EFKA employee is accused of pressuring a 56-year-old woman to pay 4,000 euros in order to secure a disability allowance for her mother. 

An employee of the Single Social Security Entity (EFKA) accused of bribery was suspended from duties on Thursday.

The “mafia” of municipal employees in Athens, which, in collaboration with private individuals, provided protection to shopkeepers in the capital, extorting them, with no compensation, had the organization and “structure” of a criminal organization, with “brains”, a “cashier”, a “collector” and a driver.

Authorities dismantled a criminal organization extorting business owners to avoid administrative fines and inspections, it was reported on Sunday.

The director and four employees at the Halkida tax office, on Evia island, were arrested on bribery charges on Wednesday.