Misplaced Pages

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47-618: According to Law 2800/2000, the Hellenic Police is a security organ whose primary aims are: The Hellenic Police is constituted along central and regional lines. The force takes direction from the Minister for Citizen Protection . The Hellenic Police force is headed in a de jure sense by the Minister for Citizen Protection , however, although the Minister sets the general policy direction of Greece's stance towards law and order as

94-512: A much tamer unit which is present in small rallies , sports games or gatherings where violent episodes and riots are not expected to break out. Officers of the Subdivision of Public Order Reinstatemen t on the other hand bear a more militaristic, olive green, uniform and gear which includes riot shields , helmets, tear gas , flash-bang grenades and oxygen masks . They also don't wear name tags or their badge numbers on their suits like

141-455: A rank of Lieutenant II or higher) or Deputy Sergeants and Sergeants with Investigative Duties, while Constables, Deputy Sergeants and Sergeants without Investigative Duties who belong in this Division are usually part of the Units of Suppression and Prevention of Crime (Ο.Π.Κ.Ε.) , the tactical ops groups which execute operations and arrest warrants for these Subdivisions, as well as

188-571: A whole, the Chief of Police is the day-to-day head of the force. Underneath the Chief of Police is the Deputy Chief of the Hellenic Police whose role is largely advisory, though in the event of the Chief of Police being unable to assume his duties the Deputy Chief will take over as the interim head. Regular meetings are also held with the Council of Planning and Crisis Management who are drawn from

235-497: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Regional units of Greece The 74 regional units of Greece ( Greek : περιφερειακές ενότητες , perifereiakés enótites ; singular περιφερειακή ενότητα , perifereiakí enótita ) are the country's third-level administrative units (counting decentralized administrations as first-level). They are subdivisions of the country's 13 regions , and are further divided into municipalities . They were introduced as part of

282-464: Is actually considered the Hellenic Police's "Northern Greece HQ". The Hellenic Police force has several divisions and services under the authority of the Chief of Police, the Deputy Chief and the Head of Staff which work in conjunction with regional and other police sectors where necessary. These divisions are usually headed by Major Generals and Brigadier Generals . These are as follows: Overseen by

329-437: The "Immediate Action" ("Άμεση Δράση") Department during a riskier emergency . If the op or the arrest requires even more specialized forces (either because of the involvement of hostages , the suspicion that there is an explosive device or a weapon of mass destruction at play, the threat of a terrorist attack, or even just because the opposition force is overwhelming), members of the other Special Police Forces, such as

376-543: The Airport Police Department (wherever that's applicable) , as well as the newest " Domestic Violence " and " Community Policing " offices which aim to create safer neighborhoods and offer citizens a better sense of security inside their homes . Smaller towns and villages which are located outside the city limits of the Regional Unit 's capital , are patrolled by the officers of

423-674: The DA 's office, b) allowing citizens to report local crimes in person as well as investigating and resolving those crimes, c) issuing IDs and weapon-carrying permits. Most of these duties are delegated to either the Investigations Office in smaller Precincts , or the Security Department in larger Precincts , and, in the case of Attica and Thessaloniki , the Crime Detection and Suppression Department of

470-863: The Hellenic Police , the Hellenic Fire Service , Hellenic (Corrections) Prison System, the Agrarian Police and the General Secretariat for Civil Protection. The ministry existed until 2007 as the Ministry of Public Order ( Greek : Υπουργείο Δημόσιας Τάξης ). On 19 September 2007, it was merged with the Ministry of the Interior, Public Administration and Decentralization and reduced to a General Secretariat within

517-659: The International Police Cooperation Division as well as the independent State Security Division only operate in Attica . Additionally, even though the President and Government Officials Protection Services operate in Attica from an administrative standpoint, the personnel of this division have a duty to follow the person of interest they are protecting wherever they may travel to around

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564-527: The Ministry of the Interior . On 7 October 2009, it was revived as the Ministry of Citizen Protection (Υπουργείο Προστασίας του Πολίτη) and was eventually renamed as the Ministry of Public Order and Citizen Protection on 21 June 2012. Following the electoral victory of Syriza in January 2015, it was subordinated to the Ministry of the Interior and Administrative Reconstruction and was headed by an Alternate Minister (Αναπληρωτής Υπουργός). In August 2018, it

611-753: The NSA in the US, which replaced the General Directorate of National Security after its abolishment in 1984), the Passports and Other Security Documents Division and the International Police Cooperation Division. Greece is divided into two sectors for policing, both headed by an Inspector General with the rank of Lieutenant General. These sectors both contain several regions , headed by Regional Directors, usually with

658-670: The Precinct . The Security Subdivision of a Police Directorate on the other hand, deals with the detection and suppression of crime in the capital city of the Regional Unit (as mentioned previously, local Precincts outside of the capital city 's limits have their own Investigations Offices or Security Departments ) and includes Departments/Offices of Narcotics , Homicide , Property Crimes , Extortion Crimes, Human Trafficking , Illegal Items Trafficking , Financial Crimes, Organized Athletic Violence , Hate Crimes and Extremist Violence, Juvenile Protection and Crimes Against

705-609: The Region (Γενική Περιφερειακή Αστυνομική Διεύθυνση) and NOT the Police Directorate of the Regional Unit . Riot Police Units (ΜΑΤ) also operate under this Division and are divided into the Subdivision of Public Order Reinstatement (Υποδιεύθυνση Αποκατάστασης Τάξης - Υ.Α.Τ.) and the Subdivision of Order Measures Enforcement (Υποδιεύθυνση Μέτρων Τάξης - Υ.ΜΕ.Τ.). Officers of the Subdivision of Order Measures Enforcement bear regular police uniforms and gear and are usually

752-847: The Special Suppressive Anti-Terrorist Unit (Ε.Κ.Α.Μ.), the K9 Unit , the Bomb Squad or the Hellenic Police Air Service, may be called in. These forces are also called in during emergencies and crises which regular police personnel can't resolve and operate under the Subdivision of Special Operations of the Division of Police Operations , which is under the jurisdiction of the General Police Directorate of

799-580: The country as well as abroad. (Investigative Duty - with promotion exam) (Investigative Duty) (non-Investigative Duty) (Investigative Duty) (non-Investigative Duty) (Μη ανακριτικός υπάλληλος) (Μη ανακριτικός υπάλληλος) Duties Police constables are usually assigned on patrol, dispatch, traffic control, guard or desk duty when they first graduate the Police Academy and can become part of riot police or other special police forces (Special Suppressive Anti-Terrorist Units, Groups for

846-474: The suburbs of these 2 large metropolitan areas , since patrol and traffic control is respectively handled by the "Immediate Action" ("Άμεση Δράση") Department and Traffic Police Department(s) which operate in those 2 Regions . Duties which are common among all Precincts however, include a) keeping individuals in custody who were arrested by patrolling units in the area, as well as interrogating them and investigating their cases before handing them over to

893-557: The Chief of Police: Overseen by the Deputy Chief: Overseen by the Head of Staff: Other Specialized Police Units within Departments Each of the 74 Regional Units of Greece has its own Police Directorate (Αστυνομική Διεύθυνση), headquartered in the capital city of said Unit. These Directorates are led by Brigadier Generals or Police Directors and are in charge of the patrol as well as

940-483: The Deputy Chief of the Hellenic Police, the Head of Staff of the Hellenic Police and the Inspectors of Northern Greece and Southern Greece. The Hellenic Police doesn't have ranks of 4- or 5-star generals. Minister for Citizen Protection The Ministry of Citizen Protection ( Greek : Υπουργείο Προστασίας του Πολίτη ) is the government department responsible for Greece 's public security services, i.e.

987-520: The Director of the local Security Subdivision . The Security Subdivisions/Departments and Crime Detection and Suppression Subdivisions/Departments also deal with the issuing of IDs , Passports as well as weapon-carrying permits and the registration of citizen-owned weapons. The Security Subdivisions and Crime Detection and Suppression Subdivisions mostly consist of Investigators, i.e. Warrant Officers and Commissioned Officers (officers with

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1034-713: The Environment and the National Cultural Heritage . However, the newly founded Division of Organized Crime, aka the so-called "Greek FBI ", has partially replaced the Security Subdivisions of Attica and Thessaloniki , 2 of the Regions it is currently operating in. In these regions , there now operate the newly founded Crime Detection and Suppression Subdivisions (Υποδιευθύνσεις Δίωξης και Εξιχνίασης Εγκλημάτων), which oversee

1081-792: The General Inspectors of Southern and Northern Greece, who have under their jurisdiction the regional services of both these divisions . The Security and Order Branches are by far the most important, and include the General Policing Division, the Traffic Police Division, the Public Security Division, the State Security Division (an independent division protecting the state and its interests equivalent to

1128-676: The Hellenic Police Force starting on the rank of Lieutenant I (for Scientists) or Captain II (for Doctors) without going through the entire Undergraduate Program of the Police Academy. They only get a 3-month basic training on the use of weapons as well as the basics of the law and police procedures. These officers usually join the Forensic Investigation Division or the Health and Safety Department (more so

1175-630: The Organized Crime Division and the offices of Forensic Science, Internal Affairs and Intelligence Management which operate directly under the command of their respective Divisions at the Hellenic Police HQ, the rest of the local Subdivisions, Departments and Offices operate under the Police Directorate of the Regional Unit or the General Police Directorate of the Region they belong in and are only overseen and coordinated by their corresponding Divisions at HQ. For example,

1222-548: The Prevention and Suppression of Crime, K-9 units etc) after at least 5 years of service. Constables can become Deputy Sergeants after a few years of service and usually have the same duties but with more responsibilities. Constables and Deputy Sergeants can become Sergeants if they have completed at least 3 years of service, or at least 2 if they own a Bachelor's Degree , either through evaluations from their Commanding Officers, as part of their normal progression of

1269-913: The Traffic Police Department of e.g. the Regional Unit of Heraklion operates directly under the command of the Heraklion Police Directorate, while the Traffic Policing Division which is located at the Hellenic Police Headquarters in Athens only gives them general directions and has oversight over them. The Counter-Terrorism Division and the Cyber Crime Division are the only major divisions to exclusively operate in Attica and Thessaloniki , while

1316-598: The aforementioned Crime Detection and Suppression Departments that operate at the various Precincts of those 2 regions and are tasked with exclusively investigating non-organized crime taking place in the suburb under their jurisdiction . All Security Subdivisions in Southern Greece (apart from the Region of Crete ) must report all their activity to the HQ of the Division of Organized Crime in Athens and

1363-495: The area. For this reason, there is a liaison in every Police Directorate across the country linking the Directorate to these central Divisions. The 3 Departments of the Organized Crime Division also have authorization to take over any criminal investigation regarding Organized Crime taking place in their respective areas of jurisdiction (Northern Greece, Southern Greece and Crete) at any given moment after prior communication with

1410-729: The case for Doctors) and can reach up to the rank of Major General and become Directors of the 2 aforementioned Divisions. Captains I (rank equivalent of Major) and Captains II are usually the Commanding Officers and Deputy Commanding Officers of Precincts, Departments Offices or certain units, although Captains II and even Lieutenants I can also take the role of Commanding Officer in smaller departments and precincts (with Lieutenants II and Lieutenants I as their Deputy Commanding Officers respectively). Police Deputy Directors (rank equivalent of Lieutenant Colonel) and Police Directors (rank equivalent of Colonel) can take on

1457-600: The central Crime Detection and Suppression Division of Attica , while Security Subdivisions in Northern Greece must report all their activity to the Subdivision of Organized Crime of Northern Greece and the central Crime Detection and Suppression Division of Thessaloniki . Crete has its own Department of Organized Crime where the Security Subdivisions of the region report their activity to and which assists them with more severe cases of Organized Crime in

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1504-421: The equivalent of middle managers with a certain number of Constables under their command. They can also be field trainers at the academy. Deputy Sergeants and Sergeants "with Investigative Duties" on the other hand are usually assigned on ongoing investigations, but not as lead detectives. Since there is no "Detective" rank in the Hellenic Police Force, Warrant Officers and Lieutenants (I-II) are usually

1551-741: The heads of the main divisions of the police force and raise relevant issues with the Chief of Police him/herself. The Deputy Chief oversees that Council. Underneath the Deputy Chief is the Head of Staff, who, in addition to acting as 'Principal' of the Police Academy , heads the Security Branch, the Order Branch , the Border Protection and Immigration Branch , Administrative Support and Human Resources Branch and Technical Support and Informatics Branch . Equal in rank are

1598-479: The investigation, suppression and prevention of crime in the area. Under the command of the Directorate, there are at least 2 Subdivisions: a General Policing Subdivision and a Security Subdivision (or a Crime Detection and Suppression Subdivision in the case of the Regional Units which are located in the Regions of Attica and Thessaloniki ), each with its own subdivision director, usually with

1645-477: The latter 3 being under the jurisdiction of the General Police Directorate of the Region ), as well as an office of Forensic Investigations , equipped with the necessary laboratories and specialized personnel in order to conduct autopsies as well as collect and analyze crime scene evidence such as biological and biochemical samples, digital data, ballistics evidence, etc. Apart from the Departments of

1692-625: The local Precincts , similar to how Sheriffs' Departments patrol the unincorporated areas in the US . This used to be under the jurisdiction of the Hellenic Gendarmerie before its fusion with the Cities Police in 1984. Patrol Officers of local Precincts also perform duties of Traffic Policing. This does not apply, however, to most of the 104 Precincts of Attica and the 10 Precincts of Thessaloniki which are located in

1739-529: The primary investigators on a case, although officers of these ranks can also take on duties of platoon leaders and/or act as senior supervisors of task forces and operations. That said, it's not uncommon to see Warrant Officers and Lieutenants I out on patrol as they can also be assigned as field supervisors, or even watch commanders and shift supervisors just like Sergeants , although less often. Scientists (biologists, chemists, physicists, computer scientists, anthropologists etc) and doctors can also join

1786-525: The rank of Major General or sometimes with the rank of Brigadier General . Southern Greece (Inspector General: Lt. Gen. Christos Bouloubasis ) Northern Greece (Inspector General: Lt. Gen. George Michalopoulos ) Note: While Thessaloniki is not considered a region from a geographical and administrative standpoint, the Thessaloniki General Police Directorate operates as a Regional General Directorate and

1833-539: The rank of Police Director or Police Deputy Director. The main duty of the General Policing Subdivision is patrolling the capital city of the Regional Unit and responding to emergency dispatch calls. Patrol Officers as well as Dispatch Officers, who operate the call center for " 100 " ( Emergency Phone Number in Greece) belong in the "Immediate Action" ("Άμεση Δράση") Department within

1880-453: The ranks (3 chevrons) or through examinations (4 chevrons) . 3-chevron Sergeants can also be promoted to 4-chevron Sergeants through the same examination which is held once a year. Sergeants are usually squad leaders, watch commanders, shift supervisors, field supervisors on patrol, or have other supervisory roles in certain offices, or within precincts, departments and regional directorates (eg inventory managers). In other words, they are

1927-407: The rest of police personnel, in order to keep their identities hidden. They are usually present in larger rallies, sports games and other types of public gatherings, especially ones orchestrated by anarchists, fascists and other types of extremists , where violence and rioting is expected to break out. Officers of the latter subdivision have thus been the subject of many controversies regarding

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1974-484: The rest of the Police Directorates just have an Immigration Control and Foreign Persons Office in their Security Subdivisions . Each Directorate also has administrative offices such as that of Administrative Support, HR and Education , that of Technical Support and Informatics , that of Intelligence Gathering and Management , that of Internal Affairs and that of Press , Communication and PR (with

2021-536: The role of Subdivision Directors, Police Directors and Brigadier Generals can command Police Directorates of Regional Units , while General Regional Police Directorates and the Branches and Divisions of the Hellenic Police HQ are usually led by Brigadier Generals and Major Generals . Finally, there are only 5 Lieutenant Generals in the Hellenic Police Force: the Chief of the Hellenic Police,

2068-459: The special motorcycle unit "Action" ( Δράση) , a patrolling unit in Attica and Thessaloniki which responds exclusively to severe crimes and crises with a much faster response time compared to regular patrol officers. There are also Ο.Π.Κ.Ε. Units which are tasked with patrolling certain districts , and/or during certain hours, known for their high crime rates , in order to be instantly available to assist Δράση and regular patrolling units of

2115-591: The subdivision. The bicycle-mounted police units ΔΙ.ΑΣ. and ΖΗΤΑ belong in this Department as well. "Immediate Action" officers may also support other units and help out in operations whenever necessary. The General Policing Subdivision also oversees the Traffic Police Department(s) (except for Attica and Thessaloniki where independent Traffic Police Subdivisions operate), the Tourist Police Department(s) ,

2162-468: The use of extreme and unwarranted police violence against civilians. Finally, Regional Units which are situated near the borders of the country also have an Immigration Control and Border Protection Subdivision . There are also Immigration Control and Foreign Persons Subdivisions and Departments in Attica and Thessaloniki , due to the large amounts of illegal immigrants as well as the amount of crime attributed to them in those large cities, while

2209-736: Was reorganized as an independent ministry and was revived as the Ministry of Citizen Protection (Υπουργείο Προστασίας του Πολίτη). The incumbent minister in the Second Cabinet of Kyriakos Mitsotakis is Michalis Chrisochoidis , a member of the Hellenic Parliament for the Athens B2 constituency with New Democracy . Chrisochoidis has served in the role four times previously, as a member of PASOK and an independent politician . This article about government in Greece

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