Italian law enforcement agencies have detained a group of people who sold counterfeit money through a “DarkWeb”.
With the assistance of the Italian Public Prosecutor’s Office, eight criminals were detained in Naples who manufactured and distributed counterfeit euros across Europe. To sell their goods, the criminals used “DarkWeb” shops and sent counterfeit money by mail. In July 2018, an investigation was launched against a group of people accused of manufacturing and selling counterfeit banknotes worth more than 120 thousand euros. The counterfeiters had accomplices in many countries of the European Union, which greatly simplified their work.
The criminals acted according to a fairly simple scheme: they placed ads for the sale of counterfeit euros of various denominations on “DarkWeb” resources, and after receiving the order, they sent their invoice to pay for the goods in bitcoins. To deliver the parcels, they chose international mail, through which they sent toys and various vintage items with banknotes of different denominations hidden in them. During the investigation, European border guards intercepted about 50 packages in total. The total amount of money earned by the criminals in the period from 2012 to 2023 is almost 150 thousand euros. In addition to the counterfeiters, the police detained more than 30 buyers and identified fifty accomplices.
The investigation resulted in the arrest of a group of counterfeiters and the liquidation of their printing plant in Naples.
