KOMOTINI, Greece
Officials of the Greek Consulate General in Istanbul are under investigation for alleged corruption, the Athens-Macedonian News Agency (AMNA) reported Friday.
Inspectors from Athens carried out an inspection at the Greek Consulate General in Istanbul recently and discovered that hundreds of visas were allegedly issued illegally between 2011 and 2014, AMNA said.
Some consulate officials were also allegedly involved in other illegal activities, AMNA said, adding that the Greek Minister of State Panagiotis Nikoludis ordered inspectors to confiscate the property of the suspects.
The Greek Consulate General in Istanbul has not been able to issue visas for some time now because of what it says are “technical reasons”.
The visa problem has deterred several Turkish visitors who were eager to spend their holidays in Greece, an official with the Eastern Macedonia and Thrace Federation of Trade and Industry said.
