Hundreds of stolen phones have been recovered in a police raid at a property in Brockley. 

Officers investigating robberies and thefts across Lewisham, Greenwich and Southwark used covert surveillance to identify the property before carrying out a raid on Wednesday (January 3). 

Inside the property officers found multiple bags containing hundreds of phones, many of which were packaged in foil bricks. 

They also arrested five men – aged between 20 and 50 – on suspicion of handling stolen goods. 

Some of the phones have been identified as being stolen in recent weeks across the city. 

Many of the seized phones come from other countries including China, Hong Kong and Algeria. 

Police believe that they may have belonged to international students or tourists. 

Detective Constable Callen Fahey, from the South East Command Unit, said: “Yesterday’s arrests will play a significant role in disrupting mobile phone robbery and theft in south London, and keeping our communities safe. 

“Our decisive action sends a clear message that we will not tolerate this kind of criminality – which can have a long-lasting impact on victims – and those responsible will be caught. 

“We will continue to target criminals and our officers remain committed to tackling robbery and violent crime in our city.” 

The Met have urged the public to retain a record of their phone’s IMEI number, a 15-digit unique number which can be obtained by keying in *#06#. 

Of course, do not keep a note of it on your phone as it defeats the object. 

Officers also advised people to install a tracker app on their phones.