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Authorities said Tuesday that a global sting involving an encrypted communications platform developed by the FBI has led to a string of raids and arrests around the world, dealing an “unprecedented blow” to crime syndicates.
Operation Trojan Shield involved police harassment in 16 countries. More than 800 suspects were arrested, more than 32 tons of drugs – cocaine, cannabis, amphetamines and methamphetamine – along with 250 firearms, 55 luxury cars and more than $48 million in cash and cryptocurrency were seized.
Australian Federal Police chief Jennifer Hurst described the operation as a “watershed moment in the history of global law enforcement”.
The head of the Dutch national police, Janine van den Berg, said the sting dealt an “unprecedented blow to criminal networks, and this is happening all over the world”.
The seeds for the operations were sown when law enforcement agencies earlier took down two other crypto-platforms, EncroChat and Sky ECC. This means crime gangs dealing drugs and ordering the murders of the underworld all over the world have been in the market for new safe phones.
The FBI had just what they needed. An application called ANOM is installed on modified mobile phones. Over the past 18 months, the FBI has supplied these phones through unsuspecting intermediaries to more than 300 gangs operating in more than 100 countries.
“There was a vacuum created by the lack of these crypto platforms,” said Calvin Chivers of the FBI. “This created an opportunity to collaborate with our international partners not only to develop the specific tool, but also to develop the process of intelligence gathering and dissemination.”
The app formed the backbone of Trojan Shield, an operation led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) that also involved the US Drug Enforcement Administration, the European Union police agency Europol and law enforcement agencies in more than a dozen countries.
She let the police peek over the shoulders of criminals while discussing strikes, drug shipments, and other crimes on what they thought was a safe platform.
The intelligence collected and analyzed “empowered us to prevent the murders,” Chivers said. This led to the seizure of drugs, which led to the seizure of weapons. It has helped prevent a number of crimes.”
Law enforcement agencies from Sweden to New Zealand have attested to the effectiveness of the operation.
Swedish police have prevented dozens of planned killings and believe they have arrested several “key actors in criminal networks,” according to a statement from Linda Staaf, head of Sweden’s national criminal intelligence unit.
Finnish police said, on Tuesday, that nearly 100 people were arrested and more than half a ton of drugs were seized, along with dozens of weapons and hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash. In Germany, the Frankfurt prosecutor’s office said more than 70 people were arrested on Monday. Drugs, cash and weapons were also seized.
Australian authorities said they have arrested 224 people and seized more than four tons of drugs and $35 million. New Zealand police said they had arrested 35 people and seized drugs and assets worth millions of dollars.
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“Today, the Australian government, as part of a global operation, has dealt a major blow against organized crime,” Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison told reporters. “Not just in this country, but a country that would resonate around organized crime around the world.”
European police last year dealt a major blow to organized crime after hacking into an encrypted communications network, known as EncroChat, used by criminal gangs across the continent.
In March, Belgian police arrested dozens of people after hacking into another encrypted chat system called Sky ECC, seizing more than 17 tons of cocaine.
The last operation went further.
“The success of Operation Trojan Shield is the result of tremendous innovation, dedication, and unprecedented international cooperation,” said Chivers. “And the results are amazing.”
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