Greek authorities used digital tools to seize 229 illegal luxury cars. The seized fleet includes Ferraris and Porsches worth over €10 million. Audits revealed offenses like altered VINs, drug possession, tax evasion. If you’ve ever stood roadside in Greece and wondered why so many supercars wear foreign plates, here’s the answer, and it comes with a €10 million ($11.8 million at current exchange rates) bill. In a sweeping digital crackdown, tax authorities turned AI-powered highway toll cameras into enforcement tools, tracking down and seizing 229 high-end vehicles that had sidestepped proper Greek registration. For years, supercar owners leaned on a simple workaround. Keep the car on foreign plates, avoid Greece’s hefty registration taxes and luxury levies, and hope not to attract attention. The odds of a roadside stop were low. The odds of slipping past a network of cameras quietly logging every pass, far less so. Toll Cameras As Tax Enforcers Since late 2025, authorities have been cross-referencing toll camera data with customs and tax records, letting software do the legwork. The system flagged cars from Ferrari, Porsche, Bentley, and Mercedes-Benz that had long outstayed their legal tourist window. A specialist task force known as DEOS, Greek for “awe,” took that data and went hunting. Armed with digital leads, officers carried out coordinated raids on high-end dealerships, private garages, and the sort of business hubs where expensive metal tends to gather. The result was 229 seized vehicles with a combined value north of €10 million ($11.8 million), including individual cars worth up to €750,000 ($884,800). Images released by Greece’s Independent Authority for Public Revenue (AADE) show the haul in full view. Among them, a white Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano, a yellow Ferrari F430 Spider, a blue Mercedes-AMG G63 4×4², and a purple Porsche 911 GT3 (991), all circulating without the paperwork Greece expects. The official report suggests this goes well beyond a clever tax dodge. Investigators uncovered so-called “ghost” cars with tampered VINs, some likely stolen, and in one case, cocaine hidden inside a vehicle. For several owners, the trouble does not stop at the car itself. Authorities are now questioning how these purchases were funded, with some unable to reconcile supercar money with declared income. Law Limits Foreign Plates For those wondering about Greek legislation, a vehicle with foreign plates can legally circulate in the country for a maximum of six months (185 days) within any 12-month period. However, this applies only to non-resident owners, including tourists or individuals whose habitual residence is strictly abroad. Also: A Few Dozen Cameras Caught 10,000 Drivers Running A Red Light Final penalties are still being calculated, but the direction is obvious. Whatever was saved by skirting registration rules is now being eclipsed by fines, seizures, and legal exposure. What looked like a clever workaround is turning into a costly miscalculation. AADE
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