A London-wide operation to crack down on mobile phone thieves and traders in stolen phones saw 449 arrests last week.
Operation Big Wing targeted mobile phone thieves but saw a number of other items seized including Class A drugs, as reported by What Mobile on Friday.
A number of specialist units were involved including the Dogs unit, the Met said, and seizures included 93 mobile phones at a residential address in Bromley, with 15 confirmed stolen, as well as eight phones in Ilford worth more than £90,000.
These phones were of almost all of a similar brand, and very high value, the Met said, but did not specify the brand.
Stolen PlayStations were tracked electronically to an address in Brent, where a search warrant resulted in 29 stolen games recovered linked to burglaries.
Other seizures in various areas included £10,000 worth of cocaine, Class A drugs, CS gas canisters, a taser gun and a number of knives, the Met said.
Arrests were for a range of offences including 45 for assault, four for firearms offences, 57 for burglary, 40 for robbery and 64 for theft, the Met said.
Local Islington schools saw officers visit for educational purposes, in order to give out crime prevention messages and promote registering mobile phones on the property database Immobilise.com (which allows police to return phones to owners if found).
Metropolitan Police Service commander Allison Newcomb said the operation was a demonstration of the Met’s commitment to London to mobilise resources to cover diverse issues.
“I wish to convey my thanks to all the hard work of those involved in this operation for achieving such good results and making our streets a hostile place for criminals to operate.”
