A global law enforcement operation coordinated by Europol has struck a major blow to the criminal underground, with 270 arrests of dark web vendors and buyers across ten countries.
Known as Operation RapTor, this international sweep has dismantled networks trafficking in drugs, weapons, and counterfeit goods, sending a clear signal to criminals hiding behind the illusion of anonymity.
The suspects were identified through coordinated investigations based on intelligence from the takedowns of the dark web marketplaces Nemesis, Tor2Door, Bohemia and Kingdom Markets. Many had conducted thousands of sales on illicit marketplaces, using encryption tools and cryptocurrencies to cover their tracks — but law enforcement closed in.
This international action follows Operation SpecTor in 2023, which led to 288 arrests. Together, these operations show the increasing ability of law enforcement to penetrate the dark web’s cloak of secrecy.
Dark web vendors unmasked
The 270 arrests took place in the following countries:
- United States of America: 130
- Germany: 42
- United Kingdom: 37
- France: 29
- South Korea: 19
- Austria: 4
- The Netherlands: 4
- Brazil: 3
- Switzerland: 1
- Spain: 1
Investigations are ongoing to trace and apprehend more individuals involved in dark web crime.
Millions seized, weapons recovered
In parallel with the arrests, officers seized:
- Over EUR 184 million in cash and cryptocurrencies
- Over 2 tonnes of drugs, including amphetamines, cocaine, ketamine, opioids and cannabis
- Over 180 firearms, along with imitation weapons, tasers and knives
- 12 500 counterfeit products
- More than 4 tonnes of illegal tobacco
These seizures represent a major disruption to the criminal supply chains that feed the dark web economy.
Europol’s role
Europol supported the action by compiling and analysing intelligence packages based on data from the three seized marketplaces. These packages were then shared with national authorities in the framework of the Joint Cybercrime Action Taskforce, hosted at Europol’s headquarters, to enable targeted investigations.
This operational model, also used in 2023’s Operation SpecTor, demonstrates that the takedown of a criminal platform is not the end of the story — it is the beginning of follow-up investigations aimed at identifying and arresting high-value vendors.
Changing tactics, same threat
Recent operations are reshaping the dark web landscape. With traditional marketplaces under increasing pressure, criminal actors are shifting to smaller, single-vendor shops — sites run by individual sellers to avoid marketplace fees and minimise exposure.
Illegal drugs remain the top commodity sold on the dark web, but 2023 also saw a surge in prescription drug trafficking and a rise in fraudulent services, including fake hitmen and bogus listings designed to scam buyers.
Despite these shifts, the message is clear: no platform is beyond the reach of coordinated, international law enforcement efforts.
This global action was made possible thanks to the close cooperation between the following authorities:
- Austria: Criminal Intelligence Service Austria with various Provincial Criminal Police Departments (Bundeskriminalamt und Landeskriminalämter)
- Brazil: Civil Police of the State of Pará (Polícia Civil do Estado do Pará) and Civil Police of the State of São Paulo (Polícia Civil do Estado do São Paulo)
- France: French Customs (Douane), National Gendarmerie (Gendarmerie Nationale)
- Germany: Federal Criminal Police Office (Bundeskriminalamt); Prosecutor’s Office in Cologne – Central Cybercrime Contact Point (Staatsanwaltschaft Köln, Zentral- und Ansprechstelle Cybercrime); Central Criminal Investigation in Oldenburg (Zentrale Kriminalinspektion Oldenburg); various police departments (Dienststellen der Länderpolizeien); German Customs Investigation (Zollfahndungsämter)
- The Netherlands: Team High Tech Crime (National Investigations and Special Operations (NIS) and Post Interventie Team (PIT); National Intelligence, Expertise and Operational Support (NIEO)
- Spain: National Police (Policía Nacional)
- South Korea: Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office – Darknet Investigations Unit
- Switzerland: Zurich Cantonal Police (Kantonspolizei Zürich) and Public Prosecutor’s Office II of the Canton of Zurich (Staatsanwaltschaft II)
- United Kingdom: National Crime Agency (NCA); National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC)
- United States: Department of Justice (DOJ) with the JCODE partner agencies (Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)m Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA); Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-Office of Criminal Investigations; Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); Internal Revenue Service (IRS)–Criminal Investigation; US Postal Inspection Service (USPIS); Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF); Army Criminal Investigation Division (Army-CID); Customs and Border Protection (CBP); Department of Justice (DOJ); Department of the Treasury Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN); Department of the Treasury Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC); Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS))