London Metropolitan Police has led its largest ever operation to tackle phone theft in London, dismantling a suspected international phone smuggling gang and seizing thousands of stolen devices.
After an investigation lasting nearly a year, Operation Echosteep has disrupted a major criminal network suspected to have smuggled up to 40,000 stolen phones from the UK to China over the past 12 months—up to 40 per cent of all phones stolen in London.
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Police have arrested 46 people over two weeks, targeting street-level robbers and pickpockets to higher-level offenders suspected of handling stolen goods and money laundering.
“This is the largest crackdown on mobile phone theft and robbery in the UK in the most extraordinary set of operations of this kind that the Met has ever undertaken,” said Commander Andrew Featherstone, the Met’s lead for tackling phone theft.
“We've dismantled criminal networks at every level, from street-level thieves to international organised crime groups exporting tens of thousands of stolen devices each year. Londoners deserve to feel safe, and this is a clear sign of the Met's commitment to protecting them and driving down crime,” he added.
The arrests are a result of an investigation which started last December when a box containing around a thousand stolen iPhones being shipped to Hong Kong was found at a warehouse near Heathrow Airport.
Officials launched Operation Echosteep, bringing in specialist detectives—who would ordinarily investigate armed robberies and drug smuggling—to track down suspects.
Two men were arrested on suspicion of handling stolen goods, with police recovering around 2,000 devices in cars and properties linked to the suspects, unravelling a large international network of phone theft and smuggling operations.
Around 80,000 devices were stolen in London alone last year, with organised phone snatchers specifically targeting Apple products because of their profitability overseas.
Police discovered that street thieves were being paid up to £300 per handset (approximately BD150) and uncovered evidence of devices being sold for up to $5,000 (approximately BD1,900) in China.
“Behind every one of those phones is a victim. People keep their lives on their phones, and it can be heartbreaking when they’re stolen. We heard from people who had lost photos of deceased relatives and others who were violently assaulted during robberies,” said Detective Inspector Mark Gavin, the senior investigating officer for Operation Echosteep.
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