A single stolen iPhone has helped British police crack what’s believed to be the UK’s largest-ever phone theft operation.

The smuggling network have been accused of exporting up to 40,000 stolen devices from London to China.

The Metropolitan Police’s year-long investigation, dubbed Operation Echosteep, began when a theft victim traced their missing iPhone to a warehouse near Heathrow Airport on Christmas Eve last year.

Inside, officers found the device among nearly 900 others, most confirmed stolen and bound for Hong Kong.

That discovery sparked a sprawling international investigation. Police have since arrested 46 suspects and seized thousands of phones, cash and other high-value goods.

The back of the suspect’s car. Image credit: Metropolitan Police

London Mayor Sadiq Khan praised the crackdown but urged tech giants to act faster.

“Criminals are making millions repurposing stolen phones and selling them abroad. The industry must design out this crime by making stolen devices unusable,” he said.

Two men in their 30s, both Afghan nationals, were charged with handling stolen goods after 2,000 devices were found at linked properties.

Another man was caught with 10 suspected stolen phones, two iPads and two Rolex watches at Heathrow.

Detective Inspector Mark Gavin said the gang “specifically targeted Apple products because of their profitability overseas,” with street thieves paid up to £300 per handset and devices selling for as much as A$9,500 in China.

Met Commander Andrew Featherstone called it “the largest crackdown on mobile phone theft and robbery in UK history,” adding that the force had “dismantled networks from street-level offenders to international organised crime groups.”

The operation has also exposed how London’s phone-theft epidemic has become industrial-scale crime.

Nearly 80,000 phones were stolen across the city in 2024, triple the number from 2020, with most snatched from tourists in busy areas by moped or e-bike gangs.

The Met reports phone theft in London has already fallen 14% this year, but officers say the fight against global smuggling networks is far from over.