Thread: Feds shut down $1.2 BILLION criminal internet marketplace

DEC 4 2015, 6:39 PM ET

Alleged Top Adviser to Silk Road Operator Arrested in Thailand

by NBC NEWS

A man who police say was instrumental in the operation of the online black market Silk Road has been arrested in Thailand and faces extradition to the U.S., federal prosecutors announced Friday.

Roger Thomas Clark a 54-year-old Canadian citizen who also went online by the nicknames Variety Jones, VJ, Cimon and Plural of Mongoose, was described by authorities as a senior adviser to convicted Silk Road mastermind Ross Ulbricht. Ulbricht, AKA Dread Pirate Roberts, was sentenced in May to life in prison on counts including narcotics trafficking, computer hacking, running a criminal enterprise and money laundering.

"Like a consigliere, Roger Thomas Clark allegedly served as a trusted confidante to Silk Road founder and operator Ross Ulbricht, advising him on all aspects of this illegal business, including how to maximize profits and use threats of violence to thwart law enforcement," Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said in a statement.

Related: Corrupt Silk Road DEA Agent Carl Force Gets Over 6 Years in Prison

Authorities said Clark was paid "at least hundreds of thousands of dollars" for his services.

Clark is charged in the U.S. with one count of narcotics conspiracy and one count of money laundering conspiracy. He faces a maximum sentence of life in prison if convicted.

Federal investigators said Silk Road operated as a sophisticated secret online marketplace for illegal drugs, hacking services and a whole host of other criminal activity before it was shut down in 2013.

http://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-new...ailand-n474336

I.C.E. News Releases

NARCOTICS

06/06/2016

Key figure in 'Silk Road' drug distribution scheme sentenced to 8 years in prison

SEATTLE – One of the masterminds behind the digital black market website Silk Road 2.0 was sentenced June 3 to eight years in prison, following a multiagency probe that included U.S. Immigration and Custom Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

Brian Farrell, 27, of Bellevue, was arrested in January 2015 for conspiracy to distribute heroin, methamphetamine and cocaine following a probe by the Seattle-Tacoma Border Enforcement Security Task Force (BEST Seattle), which includes HSI and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington prosecuted the case.

Farrell, who used the moniker “DoctorClu” on the Silk Road 2.0 site, originally came to the attention of HSI special agents in July 2014 for his involvement in site activities. According to investigators, Farrell was one of the small staff of online administrators and forum moderators who assisted the alleged site owner with the day-to-day operation of the website.

“The dark web is not the safe haven some think,” said U.S. Attorney Annette L. Hayes. “This sentence should send a clear message to those who peddle illegal drugs via the dark web: you will be caught, prosecuted and face serious penalties.”

“As one of the key masterminds and coordinator of the Silk Road criminal marketplace, Farrell profited from the destruction of untold lives,” said Brad Bench, special agent in charge of HSI Seattle. “Criminals who operate digital black markets and those who trade their illicit goods on them quite mistakenly believe they are above the law. It’s one of HSI’s top priorities to shut down these hidden websites and bring their criminal operators and customers to justice.”

Silk Road 2.0 was a hidden website designed to enable its users to buy and sell illegal drugs and other unlawful goods and services anonymously and beyond the reach of law enforcement. As part of the staff, Farrell was involved in activities such as approving new staff and vendors for the website and organizing a denial of service attack on a competitor.

When a search warrant was served at Farrell’s Bellevue home, agents seized $35,000 in cash as well as silver bullion and various types of drug paraphernalia.

Since its launch in November 2013, Silk Road 2.0 was used by thousands of drug dealers and other vendors to distribute hundreds of kilograms of illegal drugs and other illicit goods and services to buyers throughout the world, as well as to launder millions of dollars generated by these unlawful transactions. As of September 2014, Silk Road 2.0 was generating sales of approximately $8 million per month and had approximately 150,000 active users.

BEST Seattle is comprised of personnel from HSI; U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Office of Field Operations; the U.S. Secret Service; the U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Service; the U.S. Postal Inspection Service; and the Seattle and Port of Seattle police departments. BEST Seattle investigates smuggling and related crimes and combats criminal organizations seeking to exploit vulnerabilities at the Seattle and Tacoma seaports and adjacent waterways.

https://www.ice.gov/news/releases/ke...8-years-prison