Operation RapTor nets 270 darknet drug arrests
FBI-led global operation disrupted darknet fentanyl trafficking, arresting 270 vendors and seizing over 144kg of fentanyl and $200M in assets across 10 countries.
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The FBI's Joint Criminal Opioid and Darknet Enforcement (JCODE) team coordinated Operation RapTor, a multinational law enforcement effort that resulted in 270 arrests of darknet drug traffickers across the United States, Europe, South America, and Asia. The operation seized more than 144 kilograms of fentanyl or fentanyl-laced narcotics, over 1,500 kilograms of drugs total, and more than $200 million in currency and digital assets. Arrests were made in Austria, Brazil, France, Germany, the Netherlands, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
A key component of the operation involved an FBI-led raid in Los Angeles in April that targeted one of the most prolific methamphetamine and cocaine distribution operations on the darknet. Four subjects were arrested who allegedly operated approximately 10 darknet vendor accounts across 17 different marketplaces, selling cocaine, methamphetamine, MDMA, and ketamine in exchange for cryptocurrency and shipping packages through the U.S. Postal Service to customers nationwide.
The operation underscores the global reach of darknet drug markets, which operate through anonymous software and resemble legitimate e-commerce platforms with shopping carts, product listings, and customer reviews. According to the DEA, just one kilogram of fentanyl has the potential to kill 500,000 people, and the CDC identifies synthetic opioids like fentanyl as the primary driver of overdose deaths in the United States. JCODE was established in 2018 specifically to target darknet-based drug trafficking and has coordinated similar global operations annually since its inception.
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Source reporting: https://www.fbi.gov/news/stories/global-operation-targets-darknet-drug-trafficking
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