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Feds Ran a Bitcoin-Laundering Sting For Over a Year (theverge.com)

More than 40 alleged dark-web drug dealers have been arrested as part of a sweeping federal effort by the Department of Justice as "the first national undercover operation targeting dark net vendors." The Verge reports: The core of the operation was an online money-laundering business seized by agents from Homeland Security Investigations and operated as a sting for over a year. By offering cash for bitcoin, HSI agents were able to identify specific drug dealers, ultimately tracing more than $20 million in drug-linked cryptocurrency transactions. The hijacked money-laundering service was offered across a number of different marketplaces, with agents claiming at least some presence on AlphaBay, Dream Market, Wall Street, and others.

So far, prosecutions have been launched across 19 states as a result of the operation, seizing more than $3.6 million in cash. The same raids seized large quantities of Schedule IV pharmaceuticals -- including 100,000 tramadol pills and over 24 kilograms of Xanax -- as is typical of trade on dark net markets. Agents also recovered more than 300 models of liquid synthetic opioids and roughly 100 grams of fentanyl. Further investigations are still ongoing.

2 of 97 comments (clear)

  1. War on drugs is useless by mspohr · · Score: 0, Troll

    All it does is put hard working people in jail.
    Time to put Wall Street in jail.

    --
    I don't read your sig. Why are you reading mine?
  2. Re: PONZI TULIPS by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Troll

    Loan-sharking is as old as money. But the notion of making money without doing anything (except having some money to begin with) is inherently a Jewish quality.

    Bitcoin is very Jewish when you think about it: It comes out of nowhere, and makes more of itself, and "its just valuable", "because" plus hand-waving. Kind of like diamonds, but without diamonds. Very jewish.