Charges have been brought against two Maryland residents worth millions in bitcoin for drug manufacturing and distribution, as well as money laundering.
A federal grand jury in Maryland has indicted two men on charges of manufacturing illegal drugs and selling them in return for bitcoin.
According to a Tuesday announcement[1] from the Maryland District of the Department of Justice, Ryan Farace and Robert Swain allegedly manufactured and distributed a generic form of the drug Xanax, and sold it through the dark web in exchange for bitcoin.
According to the release, between November of 2013 and June of 2017, Farace is said to have purchased equipment to manufacture the pills, solicited orders from different dark web marketplaces, and shipped the pills using prepaid debit cards that were issued under the names and personal information of other people. The announcement also states that between May 10, 2016, and January 31, 2017, Farace allegedly distributed and possessed more than 6,900 generic Xanax pills with the intent to sell.
If found guilty, Farace could receive a maximum of 60 years in prison. Swain, on the other hand, is only accused of money laundering at this time, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years.
To date, the US government has seized approximately $17 million in bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, computer equipment worth about $2.5 million, and more than $1.5 million in fiat money from the defendants. However, officials are still seeking to obtain $5,665,00 in cash, the value of 4,000 bitcoin, two residences, and two vehicles that are believed to have been used to distribute the illegal drug.
This indictment is part of a year-long campaign named Operation Dark Gold, in which many different government entities, including the US Department of Homeland Security, the Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section
