Law Enforcement Shuts Down Russia’s Biggest Darknet Marketplace

Russian Anonymous Marketplace aka RAMP that has been selling drugs for bitcoin since 2012 was shut down by Russian law enforcement.

According to Russian state-owned news agency TASS, deputy minister of interior affairs Mikhail Vanichkin has stated that the ministry has developed “a set of measures aimed at detection and suppression of criminal activities related to distribution of synthetic drugs, potent substances, precursors and cocaine via the internet.”

Mr. Vanichkin, however, did not disclose the particular methods that enabled the ministry to shut down the country’s biggest darknet marketplace.

According to the official data provided by the ministry of internal affairs, there have been 3,775 crimes committed with network technologies, and 1,345 online resources have been shut down.

RAMP administrators earlier stated that the platform hosted transactions for 15 thousand users a day. In 2016, RAMP’s turnover comprised 24 billion rubles (nearly $400 million).

This July, darknet’s biggest marketplace AlphaBay was shut down under direct orders by U.S. President Donald Trump. The marketplace’s administrator Alexander Kazes committed suicide after the arrest.