NEW YORK — The U.S. Secret Service announced it had successfully thwarted a large-scale plot targeting New York City’s telecommunications infrastructure, a threat officials say could have crippled cell service and disrupted emergency response systems.

According to investigators, more than 300 servers were discovered and dismantled across multiple sites in New York. Authorities believe the system had the capacity to disable cell towers, jam 911 calls, and cause a widespread communications blackout.

The operation comes just days before President Donald Trump is scheduled to address the United Nations General Assembly in New York. Officials have not disclosed whether the timing was connected, but they emphasized the seriousness of the threat.

Preliminary findings suggest ties to foreign actors, with officials pointing to possible links to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The use of illicit SIM cards traced back to overseas networks strengthened those suspicions, though the investigation remains ongoing.

Law enforcement praised the swift action of the Secret Service and partner agencies, saying the takedown may have prevented a catastrophic disruption to one of the world’s busiest cities.