Police worker told villains that 'WhatsApp for criminals' was hacked by cops
A corrupt police worker has been jailed after she was caught revealing to the underworld that the secret EncroChat communications platform had been hacked by law enforcement.
Natalie Mottram, 25, who worked as an intelligence analyst at the North West Regional Crime Unit (NWRCU), told her personal trainer Jonathan Kay, 39, a minor criminal, that the platform, known as WhatsApp for criminals, had been hacked. He told a suspected serious criminal, and a court heard the revelation soon spread in the underworld and villains were able to stop using EncroChat and avoid justice.
On Friday 3 November, both Mottram, who had a £1,500-a-month cannabis habit, and father-of-two Kay were jailed over the leak. Encrochat was shut down on the day they were arrested.
Jonathan Kay (NCA)The Manchester Evening News reported that, during jailing, Mottram at Liverpool, Judge Neil Flewitt KC told her: "It's a tragedy that as a result of these offences you have lost your reputation, your career and you must now lose your liberty.
"However, I have no doubt you knew and understood the trust place in you by your employer. Never-the-less you betrayed that trust to maintain your friendship with Jonathan Kay ... and in doing so you revealed highly sensitive information and potentially compromised a large number of police investigations into crimes of the utmost gravity."
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Mottram, from Warrington, joined Cheshire Police as an apprentice in August 2017 but a year later she successfully applied to NWRCU on secondment as an analyst where she was given clearance to access a police intelligence system called Niche, prosecutor Henry Riding told the court.
She and other colleagues were sent an email that read: "DO NOT search on your friends, relatives, neighbours or anyone else you know for your own purpose." Despite concern from a detective sergeant about her 'youth and inexperience', she was moved to the 'sensitive intelligence unit' where she had unrestricted access to computer intelligence logs, said Mr Riding.
Before the joining the unit, she signed a declaration confirming she understood the importance of protecting intelligence and she risked jail if she revealed it. But the court heard that at 7.25am on April 16, 2019, Mottram carried out a search on Niche about her personal trainer, Jonathan Kay, and looked at a log about him which revealed a vehicle linked to him and a stop search conducted on him.
Mottram discovered a connection between Kay and a man named in court as Liam France, suspected of serious criminal activity, who is still on the run. She dug deeper into France's background and sought more information about Kay, the court was told.
A few months later, in October 2019, Mottram told her boss that she had been kicked out of her family home and was now staying with gym friends at an address on Newark Drive in Warrington, where Kay lived with his partner Leah Bennett.
Despite her personal issues, Mottram managed to secure a promotion to intelligence analyst on the unit. The court heard that text messages revealed tension between Mottram's hosts, Kay and Bennett, suggesting paranoia. Kay texted his partner Bennett: "I've been up since 4 Leah listening to car doors close outside sh***ing my self x."
When she tried to soothe him, he responded, "You panic over damp on a sill I might have soca investigating me so yeah I'm a little on edge babe". Bennett mentioned that their guest 'Nat' had said 'nothing is happening so u can relax a bit x'.
Kay texted about his police informant that 'she said they might not act on this because of the scale they might investigate who's involved'. The court was told about a secret operation, named Venetic, launched by the National Crime Agency. This operation took advantage of data hacked from EncroChat servers by French police.
The network was used exclusively by criminals who bought handsets for up to £1,500 to communicate securely away from law enforcement agencies. Mr Riding said: "When Operation Venetic began, its existence was a closely guarded secret and the details of it were only discussed on a need to know basis. Those working on it within the Regional Organised Crime Unit were frequently reminded of the need for operational security and told not to discuss the details more widely than absolutely necessary."
Mottram was among those given access to the EncroChat material. Kay messaged one of his contacts: "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 only at the moment. There software runs 48 hours behind real time. So have ur burns one day max. And try to avoid giving postcodes over it."
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'Burns' refers to the delete-time on messages. The court heard that Mottram, while at Kay's home on April 24, 2020, accessed sensitive Venetic material on her work laptop. Two hours later, she called Liam France. The content of the one minute and 44 second call remains unknown, but prosecutors suspect it was about EncroChat.
On the next day, she used her work laptop again to access police systems while at her family home. She then travelled to Kay's home where she continued to work on the device. Lloyd Morgan, defending Mottram, told the court his client understands she committed serious offences. He added that her actions had caused 'grief and anguish' for her family. He described his client as 'immature and naive'.
Mottram was taking medication after being diagnosed with ADHD and depression, and was receiving counselling, said Mr Morgan. He noted she had no previous convictions and no longer used cannabis or alcohol. Oliver Cook, defending Kay, said his client, a father-of-two boys aged 13 and seven who worked as a project manager for a roofing company, had recently lost his father and he was now a carer for his unwell mother.
He had been a 'responsible productive member of society'. The court was told Kay had five previous convictions covering eight previous offences, mostly motoring offences. Judge Flewitt KC, while sentencing the duo, told the court: "The revelation of the existence of Operation Venetic to organised criminals who proceeded to warn others represents a serious impact on the administration of justice. It allowed those who received warnings to take steps to protect themselves."
Mottram was sentenced to three years and nine months in prison after admitting to unauthorised access to police records, perverting the course of justice and misconduct in a public office. Kay received a two-year and six-month sentence for one offence of perverting the course of justice.
John McKeon, head of the NCA's anti-corruption unit, commented after the hearing: "Operation Venetic is a once-in-a-generation investigation which has made a huge contribution to public protection. More than 1,240 offenders have been convicted, more than 173 firearms recovered and more than nine tonnes of heroin and cocaine seized.
"More than 200 threats to life were averted. But Mottram's actions had the potential to derail all that. There is no place for corrupt officers in UK law enforcement and it was vital that this investigation uncovered her betrayal."
* An AI tool was used to add an extra layer to the editing process for this story. You can report any errors to [email protected]
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