Greek priest accused of fraud in bogus job scheme with at least 166 victims

THESSALONIKI, Greece – Greek police say an Orthodox priest and an unemployed accomplice are under arrest on fraud charges, accused of running a bogus job placement organization that scammed at least 166 people desperate for work.

The 30-year-old priest and his 45-year-old accomplice are accused of bilking victims out of a total of 78,000 euros ($108,500), promising jobs that never materialized in what appeared to be a pyramid scheme dating to 2009, police said Monday in the northern city of Thessaloniki.

Athinagoras Pazarlis, the city crime squad director, said victims each paid hundreds of euros, unwittingly making out payments to prior victims.

The two suspects, who were not named, were arrested Sunday after police searched their homes.

Greece, recovering from six years of recession, has an unemployment rate of nearly 28 percent.