Global Dark Web Crackdown: 288 Arrested, Drugs, Guns, and Crypto Seized
The US and international law enforcement have made 288 arrests and seized over $53 million in cash and cryptocurrency as part of a major dark web crackdown.
In a Tuesday press release, the US Justice Department said the operation, started in 2021, spanned across the United States, Europe, and South America and involved law enforcement on three continents.
The "unprecedented" operation, dubbed Operation SpecTor, was aimed at tackling fentanyl and opioid trafficking on the darknet.
The joint action saw 288 suspects arrested, over $53 million in cash and cryptocurrency confiscated, and dozens of firearms and more than 850 kilograms of drugs seized.
In the US, more than 100 federal operations and prosecutions had been made, Attorney General Merrick Garland said, adding:
“Operation SpecTor was a coordinated international law enforcement effort, spanning three continents, to disrupt drug trafficking on the dark web and represents the most funds seized and the highest number of arrests in any coordinated international action led by the Justice Department against drug traffickers on the dark web"
Garland mentioned that over 150 of the arrests were made in the US, with one in California accused of selling $2 million of fentanyl and methamphetamine on the dark web.
The operation also involved law enforcement from nine other countries, including Austria, Brazil, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Switzerland, and the UK.
In a separate press release, Europol added that the operation resulted in the seizure of a dark-web marketplace called Monopoly Market.
"This operation sends a strong message to criminals on the dark web: international law enforcement has the means and the ability to identify and hold you accountable for your
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