[jstanley]

> The NCA said properties in Hull, Leeds, London, Manchester, Merseyside, Milton Keynes, Nottingham, Somerset and Surrey were among those searched.

Presumably there would have to be some allegation of UK law-breaking in order to get a search warrant for properties in the UK.

[salad77]

No, just a mutual aid request from an agency recognized under law enforcement treaty. There are many agreements for mutual recognition and execution of legal process across national boundaries (normally added as part of trade treaty negotiations but sometimes in things like extradition treaties). Lots of FBI raids outside the US are conducted this way - local police do the raid and have FBI 'observe' them in action. In this case, an EU police force and a 5-Eyes nation like Australia will be zero-friction recipient of assistance.