UK Drug Dealer Caught After Sharing Topless Selfie On Encrypted Chat

A drug dealer in the UK was arrested by law enforcement officials after posting a topless selfie of himself aboard a luxurious yacht, which served as his residence. The criminal had shared the brazen photograph on EncroChat, an online platform frequented by individuals involved in illicit transactions.

Darren Stirling, a 58-year-old drug dealer, operated in Basildon, Essex, supplying a range of illicit drugs such as cocaine, MDMA, cannabis, and ketamine.

The police were closely monitoring the encrypted network, which eventually led to Darren's identification based on the revealing photograph he posted.

Adding to his folly, Stirling listed the boat, serving as his residence, as his 'primary address' on the network. This critical information significantly aided law enforcement in pinpointing his location at Penton Hook Marina, Chertsey, Surrey, leading to his arrest in July 2020.

Stirling was sentenced to 18 years in jail after appearing at Westminster Magistrates Court on Monday, facing charges related to two distinct drug offenses.

According to the Essex Police, Stirling was found on the vessel and was immediately recognised by officers. Also seized from the boat were a suspected encrypted mobile device, cannabis, hundreds of tablets, and a signal jammer device. A vehicle attributed to Stirling was traced to two self-storage units.

Inside one of the units, officers discovered more than ten million tablets, suspected to be diazepam due to the wrapping but later found to be an antihistamine following testing.

What is EncroChat?

According to the Essex Police, EncroChat offered a secure mobile phone instant messaging service with 60,000 users worldwide and around 10,000 in the UK.

The primary use was for coordinating and planning criminal activities, including the distribution of illicit commodities and money laundering.

Since 2016, international law enforcement agencies have worked together to target EncroChat, and in 2020, agencies in France and the Netherlands infiltrated the platform.

The intelligence gleaned through this operation was then shared via Europol with national law enforcement agencies.