A Brisbane woman, 32, has been arrested and charged with buying and selling illegal drugs from the dark web. The female drug dealer has been accused of importing a package which was later intercepted by Australian Border Patrol Police. This was in response to collect intelligence on the illegal importation from the United Kingdom, following an investigation by Australian Federal police (AFP).
The anonymity through which the dark web operates has been the catalyst of illegal activities on the internet. It has acted like an underground black market where there is a sampling of goods and services that attract the interest of illegal handlers who have a great pique with the police and law enforcement agencies. This way they have been able to evade the authorities.
On the darknet, a user can purchase goods and services that would otherwise attract the attention of the authorities. Drugs and weapons are specially packaged in shipments that escape x-ray scans through consignments that mimic electronics or other instruments. The purchase through the dark web is enabled by the use of cryptocurrencies such as bitcoins and the use of web-hosts that cannot be infiltrated.
“The Brisbane woman placed her order using a dark web portal, made payment using bitcoin and later organized for the importation of several consignments of illegal drugs from the United Kingdom,” Terry Price said. The Police force led by Terry Price, the Border Force regional patrol commander for Queensland continued: “This is now a mission accomplished and people shouldn’t make any more assumptions that the dark web is Invisible to Australian Agencies.”
Terry said that they had been able to detect illegal imports and trades made through the dark web black markets with the help and close collaboration among all law enforcement agencies. He added that last year, border officers had been deployed to focus on controlled substances being imported after purchasing them from the dark web. Last year AFP also claimed to have received intercepted data by authorities who cracked down on Hansa darknet marketplace.
Users of the dark web have always felt shielded from authorities and it was a breakthrough when Australian authorities intercepted a shipment of drugs containing Ecstasy and opioids purchased through the darknet. Most of these drugs have very high concentrations that render them reasonably difficult for common users to determine what doses are harmless. It is believed the woman had used a portal on the web where she had arranged for an array of drug shipments from Britain. It is alleged that she used bitcoins in placing the orders and pay for the delivery too.
The notoriety of some darknet portals has provided authorities with leads to follow in the crackdown on illegal dark websites. Some site admins often flaunt their web discourses on social media and the common worldwide website scouting for prospective visitors. But it has led to some sites going down. The infamous market popularly known as Silk Road was taken down by American law enforcement agencies two years ago.
In a statement, the Australian authorities underscored the fact that the dark web and their operations were not entirely invisible. They also brought to light the importance of inter-agencies working together to curb back activities carried out on the underground black market. There was a close collaboration of various Australian agencies with Britain’s law enforcement on the crackdown on this specific shipment.
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