German officials have closed the server infrastructure of the Russian darknet market Hydra, confiscating € 23 million in bitcoin. This is reported by German Federal Police.
Along with the closure of servers located in Germany, the authorities are also launching an investigation into "unknown operators and administrators" of Hydra, who are suspected of drug trafficking and money laundering. German officials say they have been investigating the market since August 2021 with US assistance, but have not yet made any arrests.
According to Wired , the investigative company Chainanalysis, found $ 200 million in stolen cryptocurrencies that drifted on the platforms in 2021 and early 2022. Of that, $ 5 million was related to fraud, $ 4 million to extortion, and another $ 4 million came from sanctioned sources. In total, $ 2 billion in transactions came from "risky" sources.
Hydra is a darknet market, primarily focused on crime in Russia and neighboring countries. It works as a hub for drug trafficking, stolen credit card information, counterfeit money and documents, and other illegal services. Through the site, dealers could communicate and transfer drugs, hiding them in places marked with geotags.
About 17 million users and 19,000 sellers "work" on the site. Hydra has the highest turnover ratio among other darknet markets in the world. In 2020 alone, the total turnover here was € 1.23 billion.