The U.S. Federal Court has handed down a heavy sentence to Rui-Siang Lin, the founder of the “Incognito Market,” for operating an online dark web drug trafficking platform based on cryptocurrency. He was sentenced to 30 years in prison and confiscated $105,045,109 in illegal proceeds. This case is regarded as one of the most serious law enforcement actions against “cryptocurrency dark web drug markets” in recent years.
According to the Southern District of New York Prosecutor’s Office, Incognito Market operated from October 2020 until its shutdown in March 2024. Relying on a cryptocurrency payment system and an internal transfer mechanism called “Incognito Bank,” it provided anonymous trading services to users worldwide. The platform facilitated over 640,000 transactions, with a total value exceeding $105 million. It had more than 400,000 registered buyers and over 1,800 sellers.
Investigations revealed that the illegal items sold on the platform were primarily drugs, including heroin, cocaine, LSD, MDMA, methamphetamine, ketamine, alprazolam, and counterfeit prescription medications. Many “oxycodone” products were actually fentanyl, which directly caused at least one death and affected hundreds of thousands of families.
Judge Colleen McMahon stated during sentencing that Rui-Siang Lin’s actions constituted a “transnational digital drug empire,” emphasizing his use of blockchain’s anonymity features to conceal the flow of criminal funds. Prosecutors also disclosed that before the platform was shut down, Lin embezzled user funds and attempted to blackmail users by threatening to expose transaction records.
This case also echoes recent law enforcement actions against “cryptocurrency money laundering on the dark web,” including asset seizures of Helix mixers and BidenCash black market. The U.S. Department of Justice announced that it will continue to strengthen regulation and crack down on “dark web cryptocurrency crimes,” “Bitcoin money laundering channels,” and anonymous payment systems.
Disclaimer: The information on this page may come from third parties and does not represent the views or opinions of Gate. The content displayed on this page is for reference only and does not constitute any financial, investment, or legal advice. Gate does not guarantee the accuracy or completeness of the information and shall not be liable for any losses arising from the use of this information. Virtual asset investments carry high risks and are subject to significant price volatility. You may lose all of your invested principal. Please fully understand the relevant risks and make prudent decisions based on your own financial situation and risk tolerance. For details, please refer to
Disclaimer.
Related Articles
South Korea Police Agency Sets First-Ever Dark Coin Management Guidelines, Virtual Assets Compressed by Approximately 54.5 Billion Korean Won Over Past 5 Years
Korea's National Police Agency completes draft virtual asset management directive, first time including dark coin management and clarifying software wallet solutions. Over the past 5 years, virtual assets worth approximately 54.5 billion won have been seized, with police planning to select private custodian institutions. Experts recommend establishing a government-led custody system.
GateNews23m ago
BTC falls below 75000 USDT, intraday decline of 0.16%
Gate News reports that on March 17, Bitcoin fell below the 75,000 USDT level, currently trading at 74,994.01 USDT, with an intraday decline of 0.16%.
GateNews27m ago
Liquid Capital Founder Yi Lihua: Going All-In on Rebound, BTC Rebound to $85,000-$90,000 is a Reasonable Range
Liquid Capital founder Yi Lihua stated that he is preparing a new fund and adopting a full-position strategy to capitalize on rebounds, believing that BTC rebounding to $85,000 and $90,000 is reasonable. He shared his experience of over a decade in the crypto industry, emphasizing the importance of maintaining a positive mindset and conducting oneself with integrity.
GateNews46m ago
Slippage: The Most Underestimated Profit Killer in Trading
Author: CryptoPunk
Many crypto traders have experienced the same disappointment: strategies that appear stable and profitable in backtests quickly see their returns shrink when actually deployed, sometimes turning from profit into loss. The issue is often not "misjudging the direction," but underestimating trading costs, especially slippage.
In crypto markets where bull and bear phases switch more rapidly, volatility is more intense, and order books are more fragmented, slippage is not a trivial decimal point—it is the real threshold that determines whether a strategy can survive. A deviation of just 2 or 3 basis points can, in high-turnover strategies, completely wipe out the theoretical alpha.
Based on long-term backtests of BTC/USDT and ETH/USDT, this article aims to answer a very practical question: to what extent does slippage erode strategy returns, and which strategies are most likely to be killed by slippage?
1. Introduction: Why Slippage
PANews50m ago
