Due to an international drug trafficking investigation stemming from darknet sales, law enforcement officers in the United States and Europe were able to detain 150 people and recover more than $31 million.
According to the DOJ, the arrests stem from a ten-month investigation between federal law enforcement agents in the United States and Europol, Europe. Prosecutors claim that the charges are to blame for tens of thousands of illicit sales across the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Bulgaria, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, and Switzerland.
Investigators have allegedly recovered over $31 million dollars in cash, virtual currency, and at least 45 guns.
The darknet is a portion of the internet that is accessible only through specialized anonymity-providing technologies, most notably the Tor Browser which is hosted within an encrypted network.
According to prosecutors, investigators discovered a variety of illegal narcotics, including counterfeit prescription and opioid tablets, as well as over 152 kilos of amphetamine, 21 kilograms of cocaine, and 32.5 kilograms of MDMA.
65 people in the United States, 47 in Germany, 24 in the United Kingdom, four in Italy, four in the Netherlands, three in France, two in Switzerland, and one in Bulgaria have all been detained in connection to drug trafficking.
