Cybercriminal Mole – UK Police Arrest One Of Their Own!

By U.K. National Crime Agency (NCA) and SCARS Editorial Team

Operation Venetic: Corrupt Police Worker Admits Tipping-Off Criminal Over Secret Nationwide Investigation

A corrupt police employee illegally accessed sensitive information and tipped off a criminal friend about a massive, secret investigation into serious and organized crime.

SCARS Note: It is estimated that organized crime has infiltrated nearly every police jurisdiction in the UK and throughout Europe!

UK Police Officer Arrested

Natalie Mottram, 24, from Warrington, was employed by Cheshire Police but was on secondment and working as an intelligence analyst at the North West Regional Organised Crime Unit (ROCU) when she was arrested by National Crime Agency officers on 12 June 2020.

She was arrested as part of Operation Venetic – the NCA-led UK response to the takedown of the encrypted communications platform EncroChat.

Soon after Operation Venetic began, it became clear there had been a leak.

Mottram not only told Jonathan Kay, 38, about the covert investigation – she told him that officers had intelligence on him too.

On 24 April 2020, a friend of Kay’s who cannot be named for legal reasons, messaged another EncroChat user to say he had learned that day about law enforcement infiltrating the platform.

And he messaged a second contact: “I no [sic] a lady who works for the police. This is not hearsay. Direct to me. They can access Encro software. And are using to intercept forearms [sic] only at the moment. There [sic] software runs 48 hours behind real time. So have ur burns one day max. And try to avoid giving postcodes over it.”

‘Burns’ refers to the delete-time on messages.

He added: “Her words was are you on Encro, I said no why, I only sell a bit of bud. She said cool just giving you heads up. Because NCA now have access. But she wouldn’t lie.”

By 12 June 2020, NCA investigators suspected Mottram was responsible for the leak.

On that day, her bosses asked her to analyze an intelligence log referring to Kay who was the partner of Mottram’s close friend Leah Bennett, 38.

But the log was bogus and Mottram was under surveillance.

Mottram left work that afternoon and drove to Kay and Bennett’s house on Newark Drive, Great Sankey, Warrington. The three had met a few years before and grown close over a shared love of gym exercise. She had her own key to Kay and Bennett’s house and let herself in.

At 5.15 pm Kay – who has convictions for driving offences and being drunk and disorderly – arrived home in his car with Bennett arriving seven minutes later in hers. The prosecution says this is when Mottram corruptly informed Kay and Bennett about the intelligence log concerning him.

Telecommunications data shows that at 5.26 pm Bennett’s phone contacted a phone belonging to the partner of the man who cannot be named. This was the first time these devices had communicated in two years. It is believed the call was made to set up a meeting between Kay and the man because shortly after they met at a supermarket car park.

They walked around talking for 20 minutes before returning to their vehicles and leaving. Mottram, Kay, Bennett, and the man were all arrested later that day and £200,000 in cash was recovered from Kay and Bennett’s house.

Using a variety of records such as cell site analysis and phone data to check where the suspects were and when NCA investigators established that on 21 April Mottram and Kay were together at his house for nearly two hours. And that evening Kay and the unnamed man spoke on the phone.

On 24 April Mottram was again with Kay and Bennett at their home. Her computer records reveal she was working on Operation Venetic from their address. Kay and the man spoke again on the phone later that day.

Mottram, of Vermont Close, Great Sankey, Warrington had clearly betrayed information about the secret Operation Venetic investigation.

In Liverpool Crown Court, Mottram admitted misconduct in public office, perverting the course of justice, and unauthorized access to computer material.

She will return to court on 3 November to be sentenced along with Kay who admitted perverting the course of justice at an earlier hearing.

A charge of perverting the course of justice against Bennett lies on file and will be dropped when Mottram and Kay are sentenced.

John McKeon, head of the NCA’s anti-corruption unit, said:

“Natalie Mottram betrayed her job, her colleagues and the public she was paid to protect.

“Her corrupt actions had the potential to hugely damage the overarching investigation by alerting offenders of the need to abandon EncroChat and cover their tracks.

“Operation Venetic was the deepest and broadest operation against organised crime the UK has ever seen, and has taken huge numbers of dangerous offenders off the streets. But Mottram clearly didn’t care about that. Her actions were disgraceful.

“Once we knew there was a leak we worked urgently to find out who it was.

“With the North West ROCU and Cheshire Police, once we suspected Mottram, we created a trap for her and she immediately walked into it.

“The evidence against her was overwhelming. She was left with no option but to finally plead guilty.”

Assistant Chief Constable Jo Edwards, head of the North West ROCU, said:

“As part of this extensive investigation with the NCA’s anti-corruption unit and Cheshire Police, overwhelming evidence was obtained against Natalie Mottram, exposing her criminal actions. She had no other choice but to admit her wrongdoings at court.

“There is no place in policing for those who are corrupt, seeking to use their position for criminal purposes. Here at the NWROCU we expect our officers and staff to uphold the highest standards of professional behaviour, to maintain the trust and confidence of the communities we serve.

“Natalie’s actions fell far below the standards and values we expect. She has failed in her public duty, letting down her colleagues and the communities that we serve. Her actions were criminal, and she will now have to face the consequences for the rest of her life.

“Each and every day, our staff at the NWROCU serve our communities with the utmost integrity and honesty, but sadly the actions of Natalie Mottram have undermined the fantastic work we do on a daily basis.”

Detective Superintendent Helena Banusic, Head of Professional Standards at Cheshire Constabulary, said:

“I welcome the guilty pleas entered by Mottram and I hope that her conviction provides reassurance to our communities.

“Mottram abused her position by accessing highly sensitive data which she then shared with people outside the organisation.

“Thankfully, as a result of the partnership work between Cheshire Constabulary, the NCA and the IoPC she has now been held accountable for her actions.

“As this case demonstrates nobody is above the law, and I want to reassure the public that we are committed to doing all we can to root out any officers or staff who fail to meet the high standards that the people of Cheshire expect and deserve.”

The NCA inquiry was part of an Independent Office for Police Conduct (IoPC) directed investigation.

Mottram started work at Cheshire Police in August 2017 as an apprentice.

In May 2018 she was seconded to the NW ROCU as an intelligence researcher.

Soon after all employees were sent a standard reminder never to search corporate systems for their own purposes. Mottram acknowledged the warning.

By 2020, her role was to conduct threat assessments of OCGs. She was briefed on the details of Operation Venetic and was advised about not widely discussing details of the sensitive operation.

As well as the crimes she has admitted, the evidence against her revealed she bought cannabis from a dealer whose phone number was saved in her mobile phone; and had told Bennett about a murder file she had seen on her boss’s desk. She also took selfies with her work computer visible and showing a document classified as ‘Official Sensitive’ meaning it required certain handling conditions.

So far under Operation Venetic, more than 1,100 offenders have been convicted.

There are many more suspects in the legal and judicial systems. In total, more than 3,000 arrests have been made across UK law enforcement and more than 2,000 suspects charged. So far more than 7,322 years of sentences have been given to UK offenders.

Drugs seizures include nearly six-and-a-half tonnes of cocaine, more than three tonnes of heroin and almost fourteen-and-a-half tonnes of cannabis.

One hundred-and-seventy-three firearms have been taken off UK streets along with almost 3,500 rounds of ammunition and more than £80m has been seized from organised crime groups.

These figures represent the collective efforts of the NCA, UK police forces, Regional Organised Crime Units, Border Force, HM Revenue and Customs and crucially the Crown Prosecution Service.

The man who cannot be named for legal reasons was previously summoned to appear at court where he was due to be charged with perverting the course of justice. He failed to attend.

SCARS Resources:

-/ 30 /-

What do you think about this?
Please share your thoughts in a comment below!

More ScamsNOW.com Articles

SCARS LINKS:   AgainstScams.org    RomanceScamsNOW.com    ContraEstafas.org    ScammerPhotos.com    Anyscam.com    ScamsNOW.com

reporting.AgainstScams.org    support.AgainstScams.org    membership.AgainstScams.org    donate.AgainstScams.org    shop.AgainstScams.org

youtube.AgainstScams.org    linkedin.AgainstScams.org    facebook.AgainstScams.org

PLEASE NOTE: Psychology Clarification

The following specific modalities within the practice of psychology are restricted to psychologists appropriately trained in the use of such modalities:

  • Diagnosis: The diagnosis of mental, emotional, or brain disorders and related behaviors.
  • Psychoanalysis: Psychoanalysis is a type of therapy that focuses on helping individuals to understand and resolve unconscious conflicts.
  • Hypnosis: Hypnosis is a state of trance in which individuals are more susceptible to suggestion. It can be used to treat a variety of conditions, including anxiety, depression, and pain.
  • Biofeedback: Biofeedback is a type of therapy that teaches individuals to control their bodily functions, such as heart rate and blood pressure. It can be used to treat a variety of conditions, including stress, anxiety, and pain.
  • Behavioral analysis: Behavioral analysis is a type of therapy that focuses on changing individuals’ behaviors. It is often used to treat conditions such as autism and ADHD.
    Neuropsychology: Neuropsychology is a type of psychology that focuses on the relationship between the brain and behavior. It is often used to assess and treat cognitive impairments caused by brain injuries or diseases.

SCARS and the members of the SCARS Team do not engage in any of the above modalities in relationship to scam victims. SCARS is not a mental healthcare provider and recognizes the importance of professionalism and separation between its work and that of the licensed practice of psychology.

SCARS is an educational provider of generalized self-help information that individuals can use for their own benefit to achieve their own goals related to emotional trauma. SCARS recommends that all scam victims see professional counselors or therapists to help them determine the suitability of any specific information or practices that may help them.

SCARS cannot diagnose or treat any individuals, nor can it state the effectiveness of any educational information that it may provide, regardless of its experience in interacting with traumatized scam victims over time. All information that SCARS provides is purely for general educational purposes to help scam victims become aware of and better understand the topics and to be able to dialog with their counselors or therapists.

It is important that all readers understand these distinctions and that they apply the information that SCARS may publish at their own risk, and should do so only after consulting a licensed psychologist or mental healthcare provider.

Opinions

The opinions of the author are not necessarily those of the Society of Citizens Against Rleationship Scams Inc. The author is solely responsible for the content of their work. SCARS is protected under the Communications Decency Act (CDA) section 230 from liability.

Disclaimer:

SCARS IS A DIGITAL PUBLISHER AND DOES NOT OFFER HEALTH OR MEDICAL ADVICE, LEGAL ADVICE, FINANCIAL ADVICE, OR SERVICES THAT SCARS IS NOT LICENSED OR REGISTERED TO PERFORM.

IF YOU’RE FACING A MEDICAL EMERGENCY, CALL YOUR LOCAL EMERGENCY SERVICES IMMEDIATELY, OR VISIT THE NEAREST EMERGENCY ROOM OR URGENT CARE CENTER. YOU SHOULD CONSULT YOUR HEALTHCARE PROVIDER BEFORE FOLLOWING ANY MEDICALLY RELATED INFORMATION PRESENTED ON OUR PAGES.

ALWAYS CONSULT A LICENSED ATTORNEY FOR ANY ADVICE REGARDING LEGAL MATTERS.

A LICENSED FINANCIAL OR TAX PROFESSIONAL SHOULD BE CONSULTED BEFORE ACTING ON ANY INFORMATION RELATING TO YOUR PERSONAL FINANCES OR TAX RELATED ISSUES AND INFORMATION.

SCARS IS NOT A PRIVATE INVESTIGATOR – WE DO NOT PROVIDE INVESTIGATIVE SERVICES FOR INDIVIDUALS OR BUSINESSES. ANY INVESTIGATIONS THAT SCARS MAY PERFORM IS NOT A SERVICE PROVIDED TO THIRD-PARTIES. INFORMATION REPORTED TO SCARS MAY BE FORWARDED TO LAW ENFORCEMENT AS SCARS SEE FIT AND APPROPRIATE.

This content and other material contained on the website, apps, newsletter, and products (“Content”), is general in nature and for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical, legal, or financial advice; the Content is not intended to be a substitute for licensed or regulated professional advice. Always consult your doctor or other qualified healthcare provider, lawyer, financial, or tax professional with any questions you may have regarding the educational information contained herein. SCARS makes no guarantees about the efficacy of information described on or in SCARS’ Content. The information contained is subject to change and is not intended to cover all possible situations or effects. SCARS does not recommend or endorse any specific professional or care provider, product, service, or other information that may be mentioned in SCARS’ websites, apps, and Content unless explicitly identified as such.

The disclaimers herein are provided on this page for ease of reference. These disclaimers supplement and are a part of SCARS’ website’s Terms of Use. 

Legal Notices: 

All original content is Copyright © 1991 – 2023 Society of Citizens Against Relationship Scams Inc. (Registered D.B.A SCARS) All Rights Reserved Worldwide & Webwide. Third-party copyrights acknowledge.

U.S. State of Florida Registration Nonprofit (Not for Profit) #N20000011978 [SCARS DBA Registered #G20000137918] – Learn more at www.AgainstScams.org

SCARS, SCARS|INTERNATIONAL, SCARS, SCARS|SUPPORT, SCARS, RSN, Romance Scams Now, SCARS|INTERNATION, SCARS|WORLDWIDE, SCARS|GLOBAL, SCARS, Society of Citizens Against Relationship Scams, Society of Citizens Against Romance Scams, SCARS|ANYSCAM, Project Anyscam, Anyscam, SCARS|GOFCH, GOFCH, SCARS|CHINA, SCARS|CDN, SCARS|UK, SCARS|LATINOAMERICA, SCARS|MEMBER, SCARS|VOLUNTEER, SCARS Cybercriminal Data Network, Cobalt Alert, Scam Victims Support Group, SCARS ANGELS, SCARS RANGERS, SCARS MARSHALLS, SCARS PARTNERS, are all trademarks of Society of Citizens Against Relationship Scams Inc., All Rights Reserved Worldwide

Contact the legal department for the Society of Citizens Against Relationship Scams Incorporated by email at legal@AgainstScams.org