Fake YouTuber Priest Jailed Over Drug and Human Trafficking Ring

A self-styled priest and YouTuber has been ordered to prison along with three other suspects accused of belonging to a criminal network involved in drug and migrant trafficking in Greece.

According to judicial sources, the 46-year-old former model—known for his social media presence and appearances in religious garb—was among those remanded in custody after appearing before an investigative magistrate. The son of a 52-year-old woman believed to be the leader of the ring was released after facing a lesser charge of resisting police officers. Three more suspects, including the alleged ringleader, are expected to testify on Wednesday (November 12).

Police dismantled the network last Friday (November 7), uncovering operations based in Athens and Rhodes that allegedly used church premises to store and distribute narcotics. Officers seized over two kilograms of cocaine, nine kilograms of cannabis, and more than €4,000 in cash, along with foreign currency. Authorities estimate the group’s illicit profits exceeded €100,000.

The 46-year-old, originally from Chania and raised in Mani, first gained attention two decades ago as a TV personality before reinventing himself as a clergyman. Despite presenting himself as an Orthodox or Old Calendarist archbishop, investigators confirmed he had been defrocked and had no official ties to any church.

Operating from a small chapel in Athens’ Liosion area—allegedly built with funds from a Greek expatriate—the man is accused of using the site to store and distribute drugs. Witnesses claimed that he frequently performed “exorcisms” during services and that the church often smelled of cannabis incense.

The police investigation revealed that the suspect’s long-professed dedication to helping drug addicts masked a far darker reality: he was supplying them.

Authorities continue to probe the full scope of the trafficking network, which involved eight arrests in total.