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Maine Senator Urges Biden to Consider Clemency for Ross Ulbricht During President’s Auburn Visit
30.7.2023
On July 28, 2023, U.S. president Joe Biden made a trip to Auburn, Maine, where he delivered a speech at Auburn Manufacturing and subsequently attended a private fundraising gathering. Eric Brakey, the Republican senator representing Maine, greeted Biden upon his arrival in Auburn and handed him...
Roger Ver at Webx Asia: Reflections on Payments, Self-Custody, and the Role of Crypto Lawbreakers
28.7.2023
When asked whether he’d rather be called a “bitcoin evangelist,” or “Bitcoin Jesus” at the recent Webx seminar in Tokyo, Roger Ver responds: “I prefer to be called Roger.” The enthusiastic and outspoken figure in crypto, scattering sats around...
Silk Road Advisor Sentenced to 20 Years in Prison While a Rogue Double-Agent Eludes Capture
12.7.2023
On Tuesday, July 11, 2023, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, led by attorney Damian Williams, announced a 20-year prison sentence for Roger Clark. Clark was allegedly the senior advisor to the original Silk Road, an infamous darknet marketplace that operated...
Alleged Admin of Darknet Marketplace Monopoly Market Extradited to US
29.6.2023
The suspected administrator of the Monopoly Market darknet marketplace has been extradited from Austria to face charges in the U.S. The man, a citizen of Serbia and Croatia who was arrested in Vienna last November, has been accused of facilitating $18 million in illegal drug transactions using...
Global Law Enforcement Agencies Dismantle Darknet Marketplace Monopoly Market, Arrest 288 and Seize $53.4 Million
3.5.2023
On May 2, 2023, Europol announced a collaborative effort between law enforcement agencies from the U.S., Europe, the U.K., and Brazil culminated in 288 arrests, along with the confiscation of 850 kg of illegal drugs, 117 firearms, and $53.4 million in cash and cryptocurrencies. This joint venture...
Silk Road Hacker Sentenced to a Year in Prison for Wire Fraud
16.4.2023
On April 14, 2023, the Department of Justice (DOJ) for the Southern District of New York revealed that the hacker responsible for the Silk Road marketplace breach had been sentenced to a year in prison for wire fraud charges. James Zhong stole more than 50,000 bitcoin from the darknet marketplace...
4 Years After the 2017 Law Enforcement Takedown, Alphabay Is Once Again the King of Darknet Markets
4.11.2022
Following the demise of the largest darknet marketplace (DNM) in mid-July 2017, the underground market Alphabay returned in August 2021, and during the last year, Alphabay has managed to once again regain its position as the world’s top DNM. Furthermore, Alphabay relentlessly conducted...
Deep Web Confusion: Ostensible Alphabay Admin ‘Desnake’ Claims the Darknet Market Has Returned
14.10.2021
In mid-July 2017, the largest darknet marketplace (DNM) Alphabay went dark and patrons didn’t know if the administrators were busted by law enforcement or if it was an exit scam. Not too long after the site went dark, law enforcement disclosed that an organized police task force, from...
Founder of the Bitcoin Mixer Helix Pleads Guilty to Money Laundering Charges
18.8.2021
Larry Dean Harmon, founder and operator of the bitcoin mixing service Helix has pleaded guilty on Wednesday to money laundering charges. Harmon’s guilty plea follows the U.S. Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (Fincen) fining Harmon $60 million last year. Helix Operator...
Darknet Market Joker’s Stash Retires After Raking in $1 Billion in Cryptocurrencies
14.2.2021
One of the largest darknet marketplaces for selling identity data and stolen credit card information, Joker’s Stash retired last month after making off with a cool $1 billion in cryptocurrencies. Weeks ago, U.S. and European officials seized some of the web portal’s servers tied...
Darknet Markets Generated $1.7 Billion in Crypto Revenue in 2020 — Set a New Record
3.2.2021
Darknet market revenues hit a new all-time high in 2020, despite declining individual purchases from marketplaces. Blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis also spotted a singular driver behind the new record witnessed over the last year. Hydra Market Is the Major Driver Behind Revenue Figures in 2020...
Major Darknet Marketplace for Stolen Cards Shuts Down After Making Over $1 Billion in Bitcoin
20.1.2021
The longest-running marketplace for stolen credit cards on the darknet has announced the shutting down of its services. The administrator of Joker’s Stash, founded in 2014, stated that the site would be taken down in February. Site Generated Over $1 Billion in BTC ‘Over the Past...
Darknet Giant Darkmarket Shut Down, Alleged Operator Arrested
13.1.2021
The authorities in seven countries and Europol have jointly taken down Darkmarket, one of the largest darknet marketplaces. The action was taken after the marketplace’s alleged operator was arrested in Germany. Authorities Shut Down Darkmarket Europol announced Tuesday that darknet...
Darknet Giant White House Market Drops Bitcoin, Supports Monero Payments Only
1.1.2021
The prominent darknet marketplace, White House Market, has dropped bitcoin payments and now accepts monero only. The darknet marketplace administrators detailed that there was an issue with a payment processor blocking Tor exit nodes, but the full transition to monero was always planned. A number...
Authorities Shut Down Darknet Marketplace Sipulimarket, Seize Bitcoin
14.12.2020
A major darknet marketplace, Sipulimarket, has been shut down and its assets, including bitcoin, were seized by Finnish Customs, in cooperation with Europol and the Polish police. Darknet Marketplace Shut Down, Bitcoin Seized Europol and Finnish Customs (Tulli) announced last week that they...
Study: Over 13% of All Proceeds of Crimes in Bitcoin Passed Through Privacy Wallets in 2020
10.12.2020
According to a study published by the blockchain analysis firm Elliptic, over 13% of all proceeds of crime in bitcoin (BTC) were laundered via privacy wallets in 2020, up from 2% from the figures posted in 2019. 13% of All Proceeds of Crimes Leveraging BTC Were Laundered Via Privacy Wallets Dr....
Darknet Market Crypto Revenues Hit All-Time Highs in 2020
5.12.2020
A study revealed that darknet markets have astonishing figures so far in 2020, despite the coronavirus pandemic, but the dynamics changed compared to the last year’s numbers. Darknet Vendors Surpassed $800 Million in Revenues Despite Covid Pandemic According to the Chainalysis report, darknet...
$1 Billion Silk Road Bitcoin Moves for First Time in Five Years
5.11.2020
At least 69,369 bitcoins, worth about $955 million, were on Wednesday moved from a wallet address that may be linked to the collapsed Silk Road darknet marketplace. This is the first time that the funds have moved from the address — bitcoin’s fourth largest — since April 2015....
Hydra’s ‘Complex Drug Delivery System’ in Russia Overshadows Western Darknet Markets
16.9.2020
On September 14, the blockchain analysis firm Chainalysis reported on the infamous Russian darknet marketplace (DNM) known as Hydra and noted the DNM is Eastern Europe’s “sixth-largest service by volume in the region.” Moreover, the report also reveals that Hydra has created...
Moderator of Darknet Marketplace AlphaBay Sentenced to 11 Years in Prison
2.9.2020
The Colorado man mediated disputes on the now-defunct darknet marketplace Alphabay