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| The secret ring supplied drugs to clients in 35 countries around the world, the US said |
The US
authorities say they have busted a secret internet drugs market, where people
around the world could buy LSD, ecstasy and other illegal substances.
The ring -
The Farmer's Market - is said to have operated through a computer network which
allows users to communicate anonymously.
At least
eight people have been held in the US, the Netherlands and Colombia.
They have
been charged with drug trafficking and money laundering and will face trial in
the US.
'Clear
message'
The arrests
were the culmination of the two-year Operation Adam Bomb, officials from the US
Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) announced late on Monday.
The
sophisticated ring had tried to hide its activities "through the use of
advanced anonymising online technology," said Briane Grey, the DEA's
acting special agent in charge.
He added
that the arrests "should send a clear message to organisations that are
using technology to conduct criminal activity that the DEA and our law
enforcement partners will track them down and bring them to justice".
The US
authorities have identified Marc Willems, 42, as the "lead
defendant", who is believed to have created and run the network. He has
been arrested at his home in the Netherlands.
It is
alleged that more than $1m (£630,000) worth of drugs sales were processed
through the sophisticated ring which used the TOR computer network between
2007-09.
The
Farmer's Market reportedly provided order forms, customer service and accepted
payments through PayPal, Western Union and other means.
It had
customers in every US state as well as in 34 countries around the world.
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