9.9.17 Dark Web and Cybercrime Roundup

Alphabay Fentanyl Vendor “NarcoBoss” Connected to Three More Overdoses

Federal agencies arrested Henry Koffie, a Pennsylvania Alphabay vendor known as NarcoBoss and DNMkingpin on July 5 for drug trafficking charges and charges associated with distributing a controlled substance resulting in death. The victim died of a fentanyl, Xanax, and etizolam cocktail. After Koffie’s arrest, the Office of Attorney’s announced that they would continue with the investigation in an effort to find additional overdoses. Investigators believed Koffie’s fentanyl had ended additional lives in the Portland, Oregon region.

The NarcoBoss Bust Timeline

Investigators in Portland revealed three additional overdoses in the Narcoboss case. The overdoses were not fresh; in fact, investigators had found evidence of a NarcoBoss-linked overdose while law enforcement in Philadelphia continued their investigation into Koffie. The next overdose was in Oregon as well. Both proved fatal. The third overdose connected to Narcoboss through envelopes found in the victim’s trash. They matched packages scanned by USPIS investigators in Philadelphia. DeepDotWeb

Former Vendor’s Records Used to Catch Father and Son Darknet Team (Zane61)

On August 23, federal agencies arrested a father and son for fentanyl and oxycodone distribution on the Alphabay marketplace. The duo operated under the vendor account “Zane61.” They sold on Alphabay from February 2016 until law enforcement shut down Alphabay in July 2017. Michael and Philip Luciano, the father and son distribution team, caught charges after Customs seized packages of fentanyl from China. But the evidence that sealed the deal, according to court documents, came from “printed records” seized in the raid of a former fentanyl vendor.

Grand Jury Indicts U-47 Vendor “PeterTheGreat”

In early 2017, federal law enforcement agencies collaborated on the arrests of Theodore Vitaliy Khleborod and Ana Milena Barrero aka “PeterTheGreat” or “Peter The Great.” (PTG) According to court records in the Zane61 case, PTG had kept printed computer records of marketplace transactions. Zane61 had ordered acryl fentanyl and 4f-iBF Maleate from PTG. Zane61 more than seven times. On one of those orders, Zane61 asked for the package to be shipped to M. Luciano at the Luciano’s address. DeepDotWeb

German Police Arrest Former Politician for Years of Darknet Distribution (03welle)

German Law enforcement raided former district committee member and board spokesperson of the green party in Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg for darknet drug distribution that began in 2013. According to the Berlin Landeskriminalamt (LKA), the 40-year-old vendor known as “Boris J.,” had sold more than 6,500 individual sales. According to both the LKA and Oldenburg police, the former Green Party member had sold 34,200 E pills, at least 7,000 LSD tabs, and an unknown number of 2C-B capsules.

Community members on Reddit and watchful forums identified the likely culprit: a vendor by the name “03welle.” Both Boris J. and 03welle sold the same drugs and utilized the same shipping and stealth method of packing CD cases. 03welle apparently became unresponsive months prior to this announcement, but it remains unclear if he had learned of the investigation or if the absence was merely a coincidence. DeepDotWeb

PSA: DNMAvengers Announcement – 75 Free Lab-tests!

The harm reduction forum that aims to enable researchers and users to identify dangerous and potentially adulterated substances from darknet market vendors, DNMAvengers, announced a partnership with “Wall St. Market, Trade Route, and Tochka on an agreed platform to lab-test a vendor’s products.” The substances in the primary focus are opioids and cocaine, although the 75 feel Iab test codes can be issued to community members with any suspect substance. (Also: PSA: DNM Avengers Forum Is Back)

“Due to the market partnerships we are able to do three essential things:

1. Funding by our marketplace partners
2. The possibility to get samples via secure ways in a more blind form
   (i.e decreasing the risk of slandering or corruption occurring a lot)
3. To effect the vendors’ ability to sell the adulterated product

The Avengers forum link: dnmavengeradt4vo.onion /index.php?topic=6918.0

Research PSA: DNM Vendors, Have Your Say!

Rasmus Munksgaard, Monica Barratt, and Jakob Demant, along with additional well-established researchers, requested anonymously conducted interviews with darknet market vendors for an ongoing study. The interview is completely anonymous and can be conducted via a vendor’s choice of encrypted conversation medium.

They recommend:

“XMPP with OTR or Wickr. We highly suggest using the most secure means as possible and TAILS comes equipped with Pidgin, XMPP and OTR. Should you have another preferred means of communication (e.g. Signal, Telegram, Ricochet) we are happy to use these.”

The interview focuses on how a vendor got into online drug trade, weighing risks and rewards, perception of the darknet community, and other related questions. The study is optional should any vendor opt out. They additionally provide a reciprocity payment of $40 in Bitcoin or a charity of the vendor’s choice.

Rasmus wrote that, so far, “… [p]eople have been overwhelmingly nice and responsive so far :)”

The full signed message and contact details can be found at the DeepDotWeb PSA.