ATHENS – Two members of the PASOK-KINAL Socialist party were suspended after being ensnared in a ring of 14 people authorities said were operating a business extortion and protection ring, including health inspectors.

No names were given but a party statement said that,  “Due to their alleged involvement in a criminal case that has come to light, the committee on ethics has suspended the party membership of two members of PASOK, who have been informed, until the conclusion of the criminal proceedings.”

The decision was made by the party’s ethics committee which offered no other details about what roles they held or if they were public officials, media reports saying the gang allegedly conducted health and other inspections and blackmailed businesses to pay to avoid penalties.

Nine were public officials and the accused face a long line of charges, including forming a criminal organization, extortion, and bribery, with estimates the gang took in more than 700,000 euros ($757,017) in illicit gains, with health inspectors and the ministry official getting up to 10,000 euros ($10,815) in each case.

Authorities have certified 47 cases and also confiscated several objects, including cash, watches, cellphones, laptops, hard disks, official stamps, and documents, the main targets being hotels and restaurants.

Members of the organization included a head of a municipal authority and employees from other public services in the Attica region, the operation broken after a complaint was made against a woman said blackmailing business owners.

Other businesses said extorted included construction sites and kiosks, mostly in Athens, the gang going after them after finding they were facing possible violations, threatening them with more inspection and fines unless they paid up.

The file charges include several felonies, related to setting up a criminal gang, blackmail, bribery of a public servant, fake documentation, and violation of office data as well as violations related to laws on sports, arms, and the migration code.