A sculptor was arrested in Athens yesterday on suspicion of fraud and the violation of privacy laws after creating an Internet site that promised to grease public wheels on applicants’ behalf, in return for a fee.

The 34-year-old, who has not been named, allegedly offered to undertake a range of tasks, including finding subscribers to his site — called “Dirty Works” — public sector jobs, getting Greek students studying abroad transferred to universities at home and obtaining official papers legalizing homes built without planning permission. The website was no longer accessible yesterday.

Officers claimed he was charging between 500 and 2,000 euros for each task and accepting payment by credit card, although there was a small mark at the bottom of the web page that, when clicked, informed readers that the site was a prank.

However, police said they received numerous complaints on a daily basis this month from people who paid money through the site but received nothing in return, though it was not immediately clear how much the suspect had allegedly collected.