“His trip to Vegas had been a setup.

He’d travelled to meet an associate as part of his multi-million dollar business, selling encrypted phones under the brand name Phantom Secure. Phantom’s customized BlackBerry phones used dedicated software designed to make an ordinary wiretap impossible.”

“The agents had Ramos on tape suggesting he made the phones to help drug smugglers. On the other side of that hotel room door, when the agents finally stopped asking their questions, there was likely a long prison sentence.

But with the agents asleep, Ramos saw an opening. He slipped out into the corridor without waking his captors.”

“A kilogram of cocaine in Australia can go for over eight times what it costs in the United States because of how difficult it is to smuggle drugs into the country. And top-level drug dealers needed a tool they could rely on and wouldn’t let law enforcement listen in.

Here, Phantom found a new market.

”Uncrackable phones provided by Phantom Secure linked to murder of Hells Angels bikies,” the headline on a March 2014 ABC article read. The report said that Australian law enforcement agencies were unable to monitor the communications of powerful criminals because of their use of encrypted phones.”

“Dressed casually in shorts and a t-shirt, Ramos quietly sat alone among the yellow walls and chairs of the cafe. He faced outward, with his back against the wall, letting him see who else was in the restaurant, Jamie Bohnett, the owner of Over Easy said.

Two figures who looked like businessmen entered the cafe and stopped at the bar with menus. They were nervous looking, “hyper,” Bohnett added. The men said they weren’t ready to order. Shortly after, one of the men went outside for a phone call. Then five or six men entered the cafe and walked over to Ramos. He didn’t resist. Instead he stood up, turned around, and the men cuffed Ramos’ hands behind his back.”

“It was over.”