Federal
prosecutors
in
Illinois
have
charged
two
men
with
owning
and
operating
Empire
Market,
a
darknet
marketplace,
according
to
court
documents
filed
Friday.
Prosecutors
say
Thomas
Pavey,
38,
of
Florida,
and
Raheim
Hamilton,
28,
of
Virginia,
owned
and
operated
Empire
Market
from
2018
to
2020.
During
the
period
Empire
Market
operated,
prosecutors
say
the
pair
processed
$430
million
in
transactions
on
the
site,
which
allowed
users
to
anonymously
purchase
illegal
goods
and
services.
According
to
a
Thursday
press
release
from
the
Department
of
Justice
(DOJ),
Empire
Market
was
used
to
sell
things
like
drugs
and
stolen
credit
card
information.
All
transactions
were
made
with
cryptocurrency.
Empire
Market
shut
down
in
August
2020.
Pavey
and
Hamilton
were
already
in
custody
for
separate
charges
–
prosecutors
had
previously
charged
the
pair
with
allegedly
selling
counterfeit
currency
on
another
darknet
market,
AlphaBay,
which
shut
down
in
2017.
The
new
charges
against
Pavey
and
Hamilton
include
conspiring
to
engage
in
drug
trafficking,
computer
fraud,
access
device
fraud,
counterfeiting,
and
money
laundering.
According
to
the
DOJ’s
press
release,
the
charges
against
both
men
are
punishable
by
a
maximum
sentence
of
life
in
prison.
Law
enforcement
seized
$75
million
in
cryptocurrency
during
the
investigation,
along
with
an
unspecified
amount
of
cash
and
precious
metals,
the
press
release
said.
Arraignments
for
Pavey
and
Hamilton
have
not
yet
been
scheduled.