Cracking encrypted messages revealed how rival gangsters join forces

Detectives say the discovery of the alliances changed their perception about how gangsters operate.

French investigators cracked EncroChat to monitor messages sent between drug traffickers, hitmen and money launderers.

The platform involved 60,000 users worldwide with 10,000 of those in the UK.

A Europe-wide operation to monitor the gangs, Operation Venetic, involved the National Crime Agency and police, with a Met team led by DCI Driss Hayoukane.

Officers were surprised to find rivals were in contact on the network dubbed “WhatsApp for criminals”.

Some 7,000 mobile devices were collected and around 18 million messages logged. It led to some of Britain’s biggest drug busts.

Since March 2020, the Met has made 942 arrests with 784 charged and 426 people jailed for a total of 3,722 years.

The breakthrough led to seizure of £19million in cash, three tonnes of Class A and B drugs, 49 firearms and 755 pieces of ammunition.

DCI Hayoukane said: “Prior to the EncroChat hack, detectives believed that Group A doesn’t deal with Group B because they are in conflict. That was wrong.

“Business trumps everything. Group A will deal with Group B because it’s financially beneficial.”

However, the gangs were so confident in the secretive network they posted selfies, birthday greetings, names of their children and photos of cars showing registration plates.

Investigators believe pandemic restrictions led to lax behaviour.

Met investigator DS Sarah Wykes said: “Because they were at home and bored, they were messaging about their personal circumstances.

“Small, personal details slipped out. Photos were vital.”

The clues enabled police to track down the identity of the criminals operating behind EncroChat.

DCI Hayoukane said the hack revealed linked characteristics of many of the crooks. He added: “They tend to be old-school criminals in their 50s who have moved out to affluent suburbs.

“Or they are major drug traffickers in their 20s who, through ownership of an EncroChat phone, fast-tracked up through organised crime.” The platform messaged users urging them to get rid of their handsets after realising it had been compromised in June 2020, and it was shut down shortly afterwards.