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Greek Gypsies fear stigmatization as child traffickers after couple accused of abducting girl

Associated Press
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A gypsy woman holding her child poses for photos at a gypsy camp near the town of Farsala, some 280 km ( 173 miles) north of Athens, Greece, on Sunday, Oct. 20 , 2013. Greek authorities on Friday, Oct. 18, 2013 have requested international assistance to identify the four-year-old girl found living in a Gypsy camp with a couple arrested and charged with abducting her from her birth parents. A police statement says the child was located Wednesday, Oct. 17, 2013 near the town of Farsala, central Greece, during a nationwide crackdown on illegal activities in Gypsy camps. (AP Photo/Nikolas Giakoumidis) (The Associated Press)

A gypsy child plays with his bicycle , at a gypsy camp near the town of Farsala, some 280 km ( 173 miles) north of Athens, Greece, on Sunday, Oct. 20 , 2013. Greek authorities on Friday, Oct. 18, 2013 have requested international assistance to identify the four-year-old girl found living in a Gypsy camp with a couple arrested and charged with abducting her from her birth parents. A police statement says the child was located Wednesday, Oct. 17, 2013 near the town of Farsala, central Greece, during a nationwide crackdown on illegal activities in Gypsy camps.(AP Photo/Nikolas Giakoumidis) (The Associated Press)

Gypsy children pose for photos at a gypsy camp near the town of Farsala, some 280 km ( 173 miles) north of Athens, Greece, on Sunday, Oct. 20 , 2013. Greek authorities on Friday, Oct. 18, 2013 have requested international assistance to identify the four-year-old girl found living in a Gypsy camp with a couple arrested and charged with abducting her from her birth parents. A police statement says the child was located Wednesday, Oct. 17, 2013 near the town of Farsala, central Greece, during a nationwide crackdown on illegal activities in Gypsy camps. (AP Photo/Nikolas Giakoumidis) (The Associated Press)

Gypsies living in a Greek camp are worried they will be all stigmatized as child traffickers after a couple was arrested and accused of abducting a little girl.

The common refrain among many of the 2,000 Gypsies, or Roma, living in prefabricated homes near the central town of Farsala is "Not all Roma steal children. If someone did something, they should pay for it."

The blonde, blue-eyed girl, who is about 4, was found Wednesday when police raided the camp looking for drugs and weapons. Now, police want to find the biological parents of the girl and will investigate international child trafficking rings.

The president of the local Roma community, Babis Dimitriou, hopes there is no backlash against the community. He says "it doesn't reflect on all of us."