Catenaa, Saturday, November 08, 2025- South Australia Police arrested 55 suspects over the weekend in the latest phase of Operation Ironside, following a High Court ruling that allowed encrypted messages to be used as evidence. Authorities have filed roughly 800 new charges tied to drug trafficking, firearms, and conspiracy offenses, expanding an ongoing investigation into organized crime and financial crime networks.
Operation Ironside, run jointly by the AFP and FBI, targeted AN0M, an encrypted messaging app secretly controlled by law enforcement from 2018 to 2021.
Investigators were able to capture messages before encryption, using the FBI-held master keys to access communications, which were then shared with Australian authorities. At least 1,600 devices ran AN0M in Australia, producing around 19.3 million intercepted messages during the operation’s initial phases.
Crypto has played a central role in the probe. Wallets linked to criminal activity have been traced and seized, adding to roughly A$58 million (US$37.9 million) in assets already confiscated, including a recent $6 million wallet accessed by a data scientist within the AFP.
The AFP emphasized the sophistication of criminal crypto use and the challenges it poses for law enforcement.
The High Court ruling followed challenges from two suspects claiming the app’s messages were unlawfully gathered.
Its rejection now enables authorities to continue using intercepted communications in prosecutions. Europol has warned that criminal use of blockchain and crypto is “becoming increasingly sophisticated,” prompting continued international investment in investigative tools.
