The Metropolitan Police have arrested 46 people after disrupting a criminal network suspected of smuggling up to 40,000 stolen phones from the UK to China.
A months-long investigation began last December when a box on its way to Hong Kong was found at a warehouse near Heathrow Airport containing around 1,000 iPhones.
Officers discovered almost all the phones had been stolen, the force said.
It then launched Operation Echosteep, bringing in specialist detectives to track down the suspects for what’s been described as the UK’s biggest ever crackdown on phone theft.
They intercepted further shipments and used forensics to identify two men in their 30s, who were arrested on suspicion of handling stolen goods on 23 September. They have since been charged and remanded in custody.
A number of phones were found in the men’s car and around 2,000 more devices were found at properties linked to them, the Met Police said.
Detective Inspector Mark Gavin, the senior investigating officer for Operation Echosteep, said: “This group specifically targeted Apple products because of their profitability overseas.
“We discovered street thieves were being paid up to £300 per handset and uncovered evidence of devices being sold for up to $5,000 (£3,700) in China.”
Phones piled on the backseat of the suspects’ car. Pic: Metropolitan Police
Police call on phone manufacturers to do more
Commander Andrew Featherstone, the Met’s lead for tackling phone theft, has described the operation as “the largest crackdown on mobile phone theft and robbery in the UK”.
He continued: “We’ve shown how serious we are about tackling this issue, but we need more help from the industry.
“We’re calling on phone manufacturers such as Apple and Samsung to do…
