The Metropolitan Police deployed over 800 officers in a massive coordinated sweep against the Hunt Syndicate, resulting in 17 arrests and the seizure of 24 properties. The operation, supported by financial regulators, spanned London and three surrounding counties and included a stabbing incident involving a Tactical Support Group officer in Cockfosters.
The 800-officer sweep across four counties
In a series of dawn raids, the Metropolitan Police targeted a network of properties across London, Essex, Hertfordshire, Cambridgeshire, and Suffolk. According to the report, the operation focused on dismantling a syndicate involved in a range of criminal activities, including fraud, money laundering, and violent offences. The scale of the deployment underscores the perceived threat posed by the group, which the Met describes as one of Britain's most notorious.
The violence inherent in the syndicate's operations was mirrored during the raids themselves. a member of the Metropolitan Police Tactical Support Group was stabbed in the leg during the execution of a warrant at a residence in Cockfosters. While the officer required hospital treatment, investigators confirmed the injuries were not life-threatening.
David Hunt and the 'Long Fella' legacy
Central to the investigation is David Hunt, a figure known as the 'Long Fella' due to his 6ft 5in stature. As reported, Hunt's trajectory took him from a council flat in Canning Town to the heights of waste management, scrap metal, and property development. He has cultivated a high-profile social circle that reportedly includes former gangster Reggie Kray, football co-owner David Sullivan, and heavyweight boxer Mike Tyson.
Despite his reputation in intelligence circles, David Hunt has maintained a clean legal record. He has consistently denied criminal involvement and famously sued the Sunday Times for libel in 2013 after the publication referred to him as a 'crime lord'. The current raids targeted a sprawling seven-bedroom estate in Essex where Hunt is alleged to have operated.
The FCA's disruption of 37 linked firms
This operation was not merely a police action but a sophisticated financial strike . The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) collaborated with the Metropolitan Police to target the syndicate's economic engine. The FCA announced it has already disrupted seven firms linked to the Hunt Syndicate and is currently pursuing an additional 30 businesses.
The legal charges stemming from the raids highlight the complexity of the group's financial crimes. Detainees include a 26-year-old man charged with
- participation in organised crime
- money laundering
- tax evasion
- false accounting
A two-decade trail of rogue officer allegations
The current crackdown is the culmination of intelligence gathering that dates back to the early 2000s. Metropolitan Police intelligence reports from that era identified the Hunt family as central players in a culture of corruption. Crucially, these reports suggested that the syndicate's longevity may have been aided by the presence of rogue officers within the police force.
By integrating financial regulators like the FCA and HMRC, the Metropolitan Police are attempting to close the gaps that allowed the syndicate to elude conviction for years. A spokesperson for the Met described the arrests as a "watershed moment" in the effort to eradicate organised crime from London and its environs.
The missing convictions of David Hunt
Despite the scale of the raids and the seizure of the Essex estate, several critical questions remain. While 17 individuals were arrested, the report does not explicitly confirm if David Hunt himself is among those currently detained or charged . Furthermore, the identities of the 30 firms still under pursuit by the Financial Conduct Authority remain undisclosed, leaving the full extent of the syndicate's commercial reach unknown.
There is also the matter of the "rogue officers" mentioned in the early 2000s intelligence. It remains unclear whether the Metropolitan Police are pursuing internal disciplinary actions or criminal charges against former or current officers who may have shielded the Hunt Syndicate from justice for two decades.
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