São Paulo police used lithium-sniffing dogs to locate a large deposit of stolen cell phones in a building on Rua Guaianases, in the downtown area of the capital. It had been known for some time that phones stolen in the city ended up at that address, which functioned as a true "nest" for these devices, usually appearing as the last location reported to victims. The big challenge was discovering in which specific apartment the objects were stored, since the tracking only indicated the building.
The sniffer dog technique was fundamental because the tracking of the devices usually indicated the building, but not the exact apartment, which prevented authorities from conducting indiscriminate searches. The animals are trained to sniff out the lithium present in cell phone batteries, allowing them to identify which unit the material was hidden in and legally authorize the operation.
The operation, called Frankmobile, mobilized more than 1,700 agents from various institutions on Thursday, including the Civil Police, Military Police, Prison Police, the São Paulo Public Prosecutor's Office, the Public Security Department, and the Treasury Department. The investigation lasted approximately two years and targeted the entire chain of receiving and transforming stolen and robbed cell phones.
