(UnitedReader.com) – The Internet is a dangerous place, but the dark web is even more dangerous. The dark web is often where criminals gather online to sell illicit drugs and other illegal items. One recent crime ring found itself in legal trouble after making a simple mistake.
Authorities tracked down the involved parties after they loaded prepaid debit cards and made withdrawals at various ATMs. One less drug ring on the dark web.
A Top Dark Web Drug Ring Goes Down—Thanks to ATM Withdrawals https://t.co/voG33OmkJB
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) March 9, 2022
Chester Anderson, a 47-year-old man, pleaded guilty to operating as a major trafficker, first-degree money laundering, as well as fourth- and fifth-degree conspiracy. District Attorney in Manhattan, Alvin Bragg Jr., announced Anderson’s guilty plea, claiming he was operating dark web storefronts and distributing hundreds of thousands of fake Xanax tablets, along with other controlled substances, to 43 different states.
Bragg detailed how Anderson laundered an estimated $2.3 million in cryptocurrency utilizing prepaid debit cards and withdrawing money from ATMs in New Jersey and Manhattan. The defendant and his co-conspirators withdrew more than a million dollars from ATMs in the two cities. This was their downfall as authorities tracked these ATM records, ultimately leading to the drug manufacturers and traffickers.
Bragg noted that criminals think they can get away with using the dark web for illegal activities, but as technology evolves, so does law enforcement. He admitted that cybercrime isn’t restricted to just the dark web, asserting that his office is focused on busting these rings and removing the drugs and violence that follows them from the streets of his district.
Copyright 2022, UnitedReader.com
