The U.S. Department of Justice, in cooperation with the Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Secret Service (USSS), the Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), have apprehended more than 35 dark web drugs and arms dealers in a nation-wide bust.
Per the arrests, the agencies confiscated such illicit items as military-grade weapons, drugs and drug manufacturing equipment. They also seized some $3.6 million in hard cash and gold bars, as well as at least 2,000 bitcoin (valued at just over $12 million) and related mining hardware.
According to the Department of Justice’s press release[1], the bust is the culmination of “a year-long, coordinated national operation that used the first nationwide undercover action to target vendors of illicit goods on the Darknet.” Kick-starting the investigation, special agents for the HSI’s New York Field Division acted as money launderers on dark web marketplaces like the Silk Road[2], AlphaBay, Hansa and Dream, among others, exchanging cryptocurrencies for cash.
With these leads, the coalition of federal agencies rooted out an extensive network of black market dealers.
“Through this operation, HSI New York was able to identify numerous vendors of illicit goods, leading to the opening of more than 90 active cases around the country. The Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section (MLARS) of the Department of Justice’s Criminal Division, working with more than 40 U.S. Attorney’s Offices throughout the country, coordinated the nationwide investigation of over 65 targets, that lead to the arrest and impending prosecution of more than 35 Darknet vendors,” the press release states.
In sum, the investigation and subsequent seizures yielded upward of 100 firearms, 15 pill presses, more than 25 kilograms of illegal narcotics and synthetic pharmaceuticals, a few hundred kilograms of marijuana, and nearly $30 million
