ROME

A joint law enforcement operation involving nine countries has dismantled an encrypted communication platform used by global organized crime groups, Europol announced Wednesday.

The highly secure platform, Ghost, facilitated a range of serious criminal activities, including large-scale drug trafficking, money laundering, and violent crimes.

The operation led to the arrest of 51 individuals, with 38 in Australia, 11 in Ireland, one in Canada, and one in Italy, linked to the Sacra Corona Unita, a powerful criminal mafia organization with thousands of members operating in southern Puglia region.

“The work carried out is part of our ongoing commitment to tackling organised crime wherever it operates,” said Catherine De Bolle, Europol's executive director.

Ghost became the network of choice among criminal organizations after law enforcement shut down larger encrypted platforms, such as EncroChat and Sky ECC.

Europol's Deputy Executive Director Jean-Philippe Lecouffe emphasized the global reach of Ghost, despite its smaller user base.

"Some very powerful criminal groups, as seen by our Australian, Irish, American, and Canadian colleagues, are using these apps," Lecouffe said at a press conference in The Hague.

Ghost's advanced security features allowed users to evade detection, authorities said. Criminals could purchase the tool without providing personal information, and the platform offered the option to self-destruct messages using a specific code.

Europol's investigation revealed that Middle Eastern and Korean organized crime groups used Ghost to import drugs into Australia and orchestrate illicit activities worldwide. The platform's global user base exchanged approximately 1,000 messages daily.

As part of the operation, law enforcement prevented several life-threatening incidents, dismantled a drug lab in Australia, and seized weapons, drugs, and over €1 million ($1.1 million) in cash.

An Operational Taskforce, established at Europol in March 2022, coordinated the investigation, with participation from law enforcement agencies in Australia, Canada, France, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, and the United States.