Phone snatching network behind one in four thefts in London hit in police crackdown

"An industrial scale phone snatching network thought to be behind one in four thefts in London has been targeted in the largest ever operation to tackle the crime wave. The gang is suspected to have smuggled up to 40,000 stolen phones from the UK to China in the past year almost 40 per cent of all phones stolen in the capital."

"Two men in their 30s, who were suspected ringleaders known as subject heron and subject seagull, were last month arrested and remanded in custody on suspicion of handling stolen goods. Their capture comes after officers uncovered a shipment of a thousand iPhones, which were wrongly marked as batteries on the shipping manifest documents, being sent to Hong Kong at Heathrow airport last December. Almost all of the devices had been stolen and were wrapped in tinfoil as a makeshift faraday bag."

"In a major probe known as Operation Echosteep, detectives intercepted further shipments and were able to forensically link the packages to the two men. Following their arrest, more phones were found in their car and 2,000 more devices were discovered at properties linked to the suspects. The investigation also uncovered a network of street-level offenders involved in thefts and robberies and police have made 15 arrests on suspicion of theft, handling stolen goods and conspiracy to steal."

An industrial-scale phone-snatching network is believed responsible for about one in four thefts in London and suspected of smuggling up to 40,000 stolen phones to China in the past year. Detectives usually tackling drugs and firearms conducted a year-long probe, Operation Echosteep, intercepting shipments and forensically linking packages to two suspected ringleaders arrested on suspicion of handling stolen goods. Officers uncovered a shipment of 1,000 iPhones mislabeled as batteries and wrapped in tinfoil at Heathrow. Searches recovered thousands more devices, leading to 46 arrests, 49 search warrants, and identification of a wider street-level offender network.

Read at www.independent.co.uk