The chief advised residents to begin by taking their own safety measures.

“It is unthinkable today to just pull the door shut and not lock it,” he said. “The windows should always be closed. Do not leave small objects in the car which entice a passing thief. Don’t stuff your wallet/watch in your shoe and go for a swim. And most importantly, if you see a suspect car or individual casing your neighbourhood call 100 and notice how directly the police will respond.”

Chief Mesodiakakis went on to say that, while certain crimes are rising, criminality in Greece is statistically the lowest in all of Europe.

“The majority of the crimes are solved and enough of the stolen items are found,” he stated. “The crime solving rate in Iraklion is the highest on a Hellenic level. We caught a gang recently who were operating in “your municipalities” who were opening doors with phone cards and burgling the premises. By solving these crimes and making arrests you indirectly prevent criminality, for awhile anyway, until the next gang appears. The rate solving in robberies is 60 percent. For thefts it’s around 40 percent. For the rest, such as rapes, homicides, bodily damage, it’s 100 percent.”

When it was pointed out that thefts have the smallest solving rate, he explained that the percentage includes the smaller thefts, like a snatched wallet at the beach or a camera and a mobile phone from your car, all the way to a bigger crime like breaking and entering and stealing all your jewellery.

The chief was then asked about several specific burglaries in Gournes where only expensive jewellery and cash were taken.

“The methodology of these crimes suggests male perpetrators from the Eastern Bloc,” he said. “Recently we caught three Georgians who had this methodology. There are certain nationalities that have a distinct modus operandi. They come down for short intervals and channel the stolen jewellery out of the country. Just recently again we caught three Rumanians who had committed about 40 robberies in the Anisara, Hersonissos and Malia areas.”

When Chief Mesodiakakis was asked about the problems resulting from police precincts being so far away from their area of responsibility, like 30 kilometres between Gournes and Amoudara, he said it will be dealt with by the ministry as part of the Kallikratis plan.

“Following the land-planning fashion, the police will go where the seat of the municipality will be,” he explained. “Therefore, theoretically if the seat of the new Kallikratic municipality will be in the former American base in Gournes then that’s where a staffed police department will follow to oversee the municipality. I will stress that all these are assumptions and are still being studied. But each municipality will acquire a manned police department.”

While most people are extremely critical of the police, one victim, Moses Kovoglanides, who has had his Kokkini Hani jewellery store robbed, was quite sympathetic.

“Catching burglars is very difficult unless you catch them in the act, which, in fact, it is easier to win the lotto,” he said. “The police try to do their best but there are not enough to cover the areas affected. This problem is not just one for Greece, it is a global problem. I have talked to people from Switzerland who say that burglaries are far worse there than here in Crete.”

We asked the chief if he had any final words for the residents of these high crime areas around Iraklion.

“I want to emphasise that the police department works and acts,” he said. “Daily we have at least 30 arrests for penal offences. But in our current society, criminality has changed in quality as well as quantity. For me it is not as important whether we get five more people in the departments as it is for the police to be aided by the people. Society should change its mentality and be more sensitive towards the police because we work to protect society. We expect more cooperation from the people.”