A press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office in New York stated that Taiwanese citizen Rui-Siang Lin was recently arrested at the New York Airport on suspicion of founding, operating, and operating the darknet drug market "Incognito Market." It is reported that the market size exceeds US$100 million, and its personal illegal profits exceed millions of US dollars.

Lin Nan was arrested in New York, suspected of operating a darknet drug market

The statement pointed out that Taiwanese citizen Rui-Siang Lin was arrested by the FBI at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport on suspicion of operating a darknet drug market and profiting from it.

The FBI pointed out that Lin, who goes by the pseudonym "Pharoah", created and operated the "Incognito Market", a drug trading market based on the Onion browser (Tor) on the dark web, allowing users to purchase drugs including cocaine through Bitcoin and Monero (XMR). , LSD, methamphetamine and other controlled drugs, and the market charges a 5% handling fee from each transaction.

Incognito Market website content

It is said that since its establishment in October 2020 when he was studying at National Taiwan University, the market has conducted illegal drug transactions worth more than $100 million, and Lin has made millions of dollars in personal profits.

Mark Rubens, a member of the FBI investigation team, emphasized in the complaint that Lin’s cryptocurrency transactions have been tracked by the FBI for a long time, and some of the cash flow of Incognito Market was found to be highly related to a private wallet owned by Lin:

Data show that the funds in Lin’s cryptocurrency exchange account have grown along with the size of Incognito Market, increasing from approximately US$63,000 in 2021 to nearly US$4.2 million in 2023.

Attempt to RugPull and extort user personal information

In addition, some media and forums have previously pointed out that Incognito Market attempted to misappropriate millions of dollars in funds by blocking user withdrawals in March this year, causing widespread controversy.

Subsequently, the market administrator began to threaten and extort all suppliers and users, demanding fees ranging from US$100 to US$20,000 based on past transaction sizes, otherwise the users' cryptocurrency transactions and chat records would be disclosed.

Incognito Market ransom message content authorities: darknet is not a safe haven for criminals

Damian Williams, District Attorney for the Southern District of New York, also expressed severe condemnation through a statement:

Whether they are conducting transactions on the street or in the dark corners of the Internet, the so-called "dark web" is not a safe haven for those trying to break the law.

The content reads that Lin was charged with establishing and operating a criminal group, money laundering, conspiring to sell drugs, and conspiring to sell counterfeit or illegal drugs. If convicted on all counts, he faces a minimum of 25 years to a maximum of life in prison.

It is reported that the founders of Silk Road and Hydra Market, the largest dark web markets, were also convicted of similar charges and sentenced to life imprisonment. This sentence may become a sentencing reference in Lin's case.

(Bitcoin goes into the treasury! U.S. court officially confiscated Bitcoin in Silk Road case: nearly 70,000 BTC)

Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Stay in touch with US authorities

In this regard, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs also confirmed today, saying that Lin is a 112-year-old CCICED diplomatic substitute with information expertise. He was sent to St. Lucia in November last year and is expected to retire in July this year.

It added that Lin had previously requested leave in accordance with the procedures and left the Holy Kingdom on May 18, and was subsequently arrested by the police the next day. Colleagues in the United States will continue to maintain contact with local law enforcement units.

This article: A 23-year-old Taiwanese diplomatic surrogate man was arrested in New York, suspected of operating a dark web drug market and making more than one million US dollars in profits. It first appeared on Chain News ABMedia.