Three Vancouver Island men are facing multiple charges in connection with a dark web drug-trafficking ring, funded by cryptocurrency.
Kien Trung Pham, Kerry Chang and Gordon Brooks were arrested on Feb. 4, 2020, about a year after police launched an online undercover investigation into an international dark web organized crime group that used the vendor name “AlwaysOverweight.” The trio is scheduled to appear in Nanaimo provincial court on June 7, police said in a Tuesday news release. Read more: B.C.
becomes first province to remove criminal penalties for possession of some hard drugs The dark web is accessed through special anonymizing and encryption-enabled browsers that hide the user’s digital footprint.
According to B.C. RCMP, AlwaysOverweight used cryptocurrency and encrypted messaging applications to cover its tracks. Meanwhile, it trafficked illicit drugs, including methamphetamine, oxycodone, MDMA, Xanax, and what it claimed was heroin, but in fact, was fentanyl mixed with cutting agents.