Two Greek police chiefs caught for blackmailing Pakistani immigrants
Police officials had illegally seized money from one migrant while another was arrested for extorting a tobacconist.
Police detains a demonstrator in central Athens on December 6, 2009 during a massive demonstration commemorating 15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos' fatal shooting a year ago. PHOTO: AFP
ATHENS:
Two Greek district police chiefs have been arrested in the space of two days on suspicion of blackmailing migrants from Pakistan, a police source said on Thursday.
The latest arrest came on Wednesday after a Pakistani man complained to police that an officer had stopped his car and illegally seized 4,000 euros ($5,400) he was carrying.
The officer later turned out to be the police chief of the working-class district of Renti near Piraeus, the police source told AFP.
On Tuesday, another senior officer was arrested after allegedly attempting to extort money from a Pakistani tobacconist.
Police later confirmed the suspect is the police chief of Egaleo, another working-class district in western Athens.
The Pakistani community is one of the largest among Greece's migrant population of around 1.5 million.
Many Pakistanis have been targeted in racist beatings in recent months attributed to Golden Dawn, a neo-Nazi group believed to be popular among many police officers demoralised by pay cuts and angry about unchecked immigration.
A rising force in crisis-hit Greece, Golden Dawn draws much of its strength from poorer districts in Athens and other cities where Greek residents blame migrants for a perceived rise in crime.
Two Greek district police chiefs have been arrested in the space of two days on suspicion of blackmailing migrants from Pakistan, a police source said on Thursday.
The latest arrest came on Wednesday after a Pakistani man complained to police that an officer had stopped his car and illegally seized 4,000 euros ($5,400) he was carrying.
The officer later turned out to be the police chief of the working-class district of Renti near Piraeus, the police source told AFP.
On Tuesday, another senior officer was arrested after allegedly attempting to extort money from a Pakistani tobacconist.
Police later confirmed the suspect is the police chief of Egaleo, another working-class district in western Athens.
The Pakistani community is one of the largest among Greece's migrant population of around 1.5 million.
Many Pakistanis have been targeted in racist beatings in recent months attributed to Golden Dawn, a neo-Nazi group believed to be popular among many police officers demoralised by pay cuts and angry about unchecked immigration.
A rising force in crisis-hit Greece, Golden Dawn draws much of its strength from poorer districts in Athens and other cities where Greek residents blame migrants for a perceived rise in crime.