Under the pretext of an ‘electricity leak’ in the house, a gang persuaded elderly people to gather their money and jewellery in a bag, leave it by the open front door and go into their bedroom. The police have linked the gang to 13 burglaries in nine areas of Attica since July, with the haul totalling over 200,000 euros. A 19-year-old man was arrested in Gerakas in connection with the case.
Spata and Artemida are not included among the areas mentioned by the police. Gerakas, however, is right next to us; Kalyvia, Markopoulo and Koropi are also in Mesogeia, and the issue touches on something our municipality is currently experiencing: power cuts.
What the police announced
The 19-year-old was arrested at midday on Monday 5 October by officers from the DI.AS. Unit of the Attica General Police Directorate. The announcement was made nine days later, on Wednesday 14 October. The investigation was carried out by the South-East Attica Crime Prevention and Investigation Sub-Directorate, and charges were brought against him for forming a criminal gang with the aim of committing aggravated thefts against elderly people. He was brought before the public prosecutor.
The 13 thefts that were solved took place in Koropi, Markopoulo, Kalyvia, Keratea, Voula, Alimos, Argyroupoli, Ilioupoli and Patisia. Three bracelets, three chains, a watch, a large quantity of gold jewellery and three mobile phones were found in the 19-year-old’s possession and at his home. According to the police, the gang used multiple telephone lines and changed them constantly to avoid detection. The statement refers to a gang, but mentions only one arrest.
How the trick worked
The perpetrator posed as an employee of an electricity company and told the elderly man that there was a leak in his home. He persuaded him to gather up cash, jewellery and gold items into a plastic bag or wrapped in aluminium foil, and to leave them outside the house or in the living room, with the front door open. He would then tell him to go into the bedroom whilst he ‘repaired the fault’. When the victim came out of the room, the bag had disappeared.
The same story has been reported elsewhere. In February, following a spell of bad weather, residents of Larissa told ERT about phone calls from people claiming to be PPC officials, who asked them to take their silver and gold jewellery outside the house, supposedly to avoid the risk of electric shock. No electrical fault is ever repaired in this way.
Why this matters to us this week
The ‘power cut’ scenario is more convincing when the power actually goes out. Due to the bad weather at the start of the week, part of Artemida was left almost 24 hours without power. And HEDNO has scheduled further power cuts on Friday 16 and Saturday 17 October in Spata, and on Tuesday 20 October, 08:00–16:00, in Loutsa, around Vravrona Avenue.
Scheduled power cuts are published on the HEDNO website, and you can check them there without having to wait for a phone call. If someone calls you about a power cut and asks you to do anything involving money or jewellery, hang up.
What to bear in mind
In a statement issued on 6 July, HEDNO was categorical:
HEDNO never asks for details of money or valuables.
The company added that it does not finalise checks via phone calls from unknown numbers. In practice:
- No technician will ask you to gather up money or jewellery, wrap it in aluminium foil or take it out of the house.
- No technician will ask you to leave the door open and go into another room.
- Do not give your address or personal details to anyone who calls you, and do not make an appointment for an ‘inspection’.
- If you have any doubts, hang up and ring HEDNO yourself on 800 400 4000, not the number given to you by the stranger.
- If someone persists or turns up at your door, call 100.
- If you have already fallen victim to a scam, call 100 or 112 immediately and make a note of the number they called you from and the time.
A phone call to your loved ones
The gang targeted elderly people, and the scam relied on the panic caused by the word ‘leak’. If you have parents or grandparents in Spata, Artemida or anywhere else, explain to them how the scam worked and agree on a simple rule: they mustn’t give anything to anyone until they’ve phoned you first.
Source: Hellenic Police, Attica Press Office, press release dated 14 October 2026; HEDNO, press release dated 6 July 2026.
