Global Law Enforcement Agencies Dismantle Darknet Marketplace Monopoly Market, Arrest 288 and Seize $53.4 Million

On May 2, 2023, Europol announced a collaborative effort betwixt instrumentality enforcement agencies from the U.S., Europe, the U.K., and Brazil culminated successful 288 arrests, on with the confiscation of 850 kg of amerciable drugs, 117 firearms, and $53.4 cardinal successful currency and cryptocurrencies. This associated venture, named “Operation Spector,” successfully dismantled the darknet marketplace (DNM) Monopoly Market and confiscated its infrastructure backmost successful December 2021.

Monopoly Market Taken Down via a Consortium of Global Law Enforcement Officials

The U.S. Justice Department and Europol reveal that officials from astir the globe collaborated to bring down the DNM Monopoly Market, resulting successful the apprehension of 288 individuals passim the investigation. The connection discloses that Monopoly was captured successful December 2021 and led to implicit 100 national investigations and prosecutions wrong the United States. In January 2022, an anonymous DNM and Tor researcher known arsenic “Dark.fail” noted that Monopoly’s servers had been seized.

“Alert — Monopoly Market’s servers were seized by their host, precise apt instrumentality enforcement action,” Dark.fail tweeted astatine the time. “If you conducted blockchain/cyber probe connected this level beryllium alert that your transaction past whitethorn beryllium successful chartless hands.”

Europol stated that German authorities apprehended the DNM and started gathering grounds which “served arsenic the instauration for hundreds of nationalist investigations.” The officials besides highlighted that Monopoly vendors held salient positions connected different well-known DNMs. The apprehended suspects were classified arsenic “high-value targets.”

Europol’s enforcement director, Catherine De Bolle, commented: “This cognition sends a beardown connection to criminals connected the acheronian web: planetary instrumentality enforcement has the means and the quality to place and clasp you accountable for your amerciable activities, adjacent connected the acheronian web.” Authorities emphasized that Operation Spector achieved greater occurrence than its 2 predecessors, Operation Disruptor, and Operation Dark Huntor.

In April 2022, German and U.S. instrumentality enforcement collaborated to shut down the monolithic Russian DNM Hydra, seizing EUR 23 cardinal successful cryptocurrencies. Despite the occurrence of each of these operations, DNMs proceed to proliferate, precise overmuch similar the mythical carnal Hydra, with its quality to regenerate its assemblage parts.

Currently, DNM patrons person a plethora of options to take from, including Tor2door Market, ASAP Market, Abacus Market, Vice City Market, Archetyp Market, Bohemia Market, Incognito Market, Gammagoblin, Psycellium, Flugsvamp 4.0, Mega Darknet Market, and Cypher Market, among others.

What bash you deliberation is the adjacent measurement for planetary instrumentality enforcement agencies successful their combat against the proliferation of darknet marketplaces? Share your thoughts astir this taxable successful the comments conception below.