Four men from London have been sentenced for handling over 5,000 stolen phones, with an estimated total value of £5.1 million. The group operated over 18 months, stealing phones across the capital and using them for fraudulent purchases and loans. Two of the men, Nazih Cheraitia, 34, and Zakaria Senadjki, 31, were convicted of spending thousands of pounds from victims’ bank accounts.

The phones were believed to have been sold abroad, with 170 stolen devices recovered during the investigation. Victims of the thefts had money taken from their bank accounts or were charged for items such as designer clothes. The Metropolitan Police’s investigation, Operation Ringtone, used phone tracking technology to track down the criminals.

Cheraitia, Senadjki, Ahmed Abdelhakim Belhanafi, 25, and Riyadh Mamouni, 25, were sentenced for their roles in the crimes. The police urged phone companies to help prevent the resale of stolen devices and advised users to secure their phones with strong passwords and two-factor authentication.

Mobile phone thefts in London have surged, with over 64,000 phones reported stolen last year, twice as many as in the previous two years, the Met said.