A drugs gang was taken down thanks in part to a can of Stella Artois lager and a ham sandwich, police have revealed. Images of the lager and snack were 'shared' on encrypted mobile phones used by Richard Wylie, 36, and Richard Whiteside, 55.
Detectives said the photos - and crucially what was shown in the background on them - 'helped trap the pair' after they were matched to Whiteside's address in Blackpool, Lancashire.
Wylie and Whiteside were caught as part of the ongoing Operation Venetic investigation into the use of the encrypted EncroChat network.
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Criminals have used encrypted mobile devices to adopt and hide behind code names, but the Encrochat servers were taken down in 2020 following an investigation led by the National Crime Agency.
Police then used the data they were able to access to identify the users of the assigned EncroChat handles - and piece together their movements.
Lancashire Police said after an investigation by its Serious and Organised Crime Team, the force was able to prove that Wylie and Whiteside were the owners of Encrochat handles named Somesnail and Peppershirt.
"Pictures of a can of Stella Artois and a ham sandwich shared on the Encrochat phones helped trap the pair after they were matched to Whiteside's address in Blackpool," said a spokesman.
It's understood officers looked at the surroundings in the backgrounds of the images - highlighting a distinctive table and documents which proved a match to those at Whiteside's home. Both men subsequently pleaded guilty to offences they went on to be charged with.
Wylie, formerly of The Stables, Thornton Cleveleys, Lancashire, was jailed for six years after pleading guilty to conspiracy to supply cocaine, conspiracy to transfer and conceal criminal property and being concerned in supplying a controlled drug of Class A to others.
Whiteside, formerly of Mickledon Road, Blackpool, was jailed for four years. He admitted conspiracy to transfer and conceal criminal property and possessing criminal property.
After a sentencing hearing at Preston Crown Court on June 28, Lancashire Police said today it still wants to speak to two other men - naming them as Daniel Hindley, 40, and Jamie Finney, 37. Both men are currently believed to be abroad, said a spokesman. Details of the case have only just been revealed by police.
Detective Chief Inspector James Edmonds said: "Like many other users of EncroChat, the criminals operating in Lancashire will have mistakenly thought that they could traffic drugs with impunity, under the radar of the police – our successes as part of Operation Venetic show how wrong they are.
"We continue to work both with the NCA, the NWROCU, and other forces across the region and the UK to take the fight to criminals and ensure there are no safe spaces in Lancashire for serious and organised criminals, including those who seek to profit from a class A drugs trade which fuels violence and exploitation in our communities.”
"This sort of activity is just one aspect of our continued fight to tackle serious and organised crime. I hope this sends a clear message to the public of our determination to rid communities of this sort of criminalisation and to make our streets safer."
