More than 700 arrested in 'biggest ever' UK operation against organised crime after encrypted phone network cracked

Police have arrested more than 700 suspects, seized £54m in cash and tonnes of drugs in the UK's "biggest and most significant" operation ever against organised crime. Officials said previously "untouchable" kingpins who have evaded justice for decades, while enjoying "flashy" lifestyles, were among those detained. High-level gangs, including those importing guns, drugs and people into Britain, have been targeted in a series of raids after law enforcement agencies accessed a secretive communications network. Known as EncroChat, it was used on bespoke mobile phones that were designed to be secure against police infiltration and examination. But in April, an international team cracked its encryption and started spying on users and harvesting their data as they carried on unawares. "There were 60,000 users worldwide and around 10,000 users in the UK," the National Crime Agency (NCA) said as raids continued on Thursday morning. "The sole use was for coordinating and planning the distribution of illicit commodities, money laundering and plotting to kill rival criminals."