3 months ago
The US Department of the Treasury has imposed sanctions connected Behrouz Parsarad, an Iranian nationalist accused of managing the now-defunct Nemesis darknet marketplace.
As portion of the action, authorities blacklisted 49 Bitcoin (BTC) and Monero (XMR) addresses linked to him.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced the sanctions connected March 4, stating that the determination was portion of an planetary cognition dismantling Nemesis earlier successful 2024.
Meanwhile, the authorisation against Parsarad is portion of OFAC’s ongoing efforts to dismantle illicit online marketplaces. Notably, the bureau antecedently sanctioned Hydra Market successful April 2022, with German authorities confiscating astir €23 million worthy of Bitcoin from the platform.
Nemesis sanction
According to OFAC, Parsarad profited from Nemesis by charging users transaction fees, reportedly amassing millions implicit the marketplace’s lifespan.
Nemesis served arsenic a hub for cybercriminals and cause traffickers, enabling the merchantability of illicit substances and services. The platform’s built-in wealth laundering features allowed users to conceal their fiscal activities.
The authorities estimation that betwixt 2021 and 2024, Nemesis facilitated implicit $30 cardinal successful cause sales. The marketplace besides offered further amerciable services, including forged recognition documents and nonrecreational hacking services. Users could besides prosecute hackers to compromise online accounts and bargain delicate data.
Despite Nemesis’ shutdown, reports suggest that Parsarad has already begun discussing launching a caller darknet marketplace with vendors.
Parasad’s on-chain activity
A blockchain investigation by Chainalysis uncovered that Parsarad funneled implicit $12,000 to different darknet marketplaces, specified arsenic ASAP, Incognito, and Next Generation.
The steadfast besides noted that his Bitcoin wallets received implicit $850,000 from addresses associated with illicit transactions.
Meanwhile, on-chain records amusement helium moved implicit $1.6 cardinal successful crypto, with analysts suggesting helium leveraged Bitcoin’s terms fluctuations to turn his holdings.
Chainalysis furthered that Parsarad had nary nonstop on-chain links to Iranian fiscal services but had important vulnerability to darknet marketplaces and indirect connections to crypto mixers.
According to the firm, Parsarad deliberately obscured his illicit activities to evade detection due to the fact that of Iran’s strict penalties for drug-related offenses, including the decease penalty.
The station US Treasury blacklists 49 Bitcoin and Monero addresses linked to Nemesis darknet marketplace appeared archetypal connected CryptoSlate.
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