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The Metropolitan Police claims that Allen Valentine, 62, his 39-year-old son Roshan Valentine, and 40-year-old Krunal Patel, Roshan’s childhood friend, made more than $4.4 million from the manufacture and sale of fake Xanax and Diazepam pills through various Dark Web online stores.
Dark Web Drug Trafficking Trio Busted in London Warehouse Raid
The Cyber Crime Unit began looking into the group’s drug trafficking activity in January 2022 after learning from the DEA that the guys were selling fake pharmaceuticals on the Dark Web.
Investigators discovered that the three were working out of a West London warehouse that was posing as the headquarters of a logistics firm. The males frequented the facility everyday, according to surveillance at the location. According to the investigators, Patel regularly left with big suitcases and came back ten to fifteen minutes later empty-handed.
On August 17, 2022, detectives detained Patel in front of the facility. The 15 medicine parcels he was carrying were sent to customers all around the UK. The amount of tablets marked “Xanax” and “Teva” that the investigators discovered is unknown. Later on that day, the police detained Roshan and Allen.
Guilty Pleas and Confiscation Proceedings Await Trio
The detectives discovered a lab where medicines are made after examining the warehouse. A secret number of boxes containing medicines produced at the lab were also discovered and seized. Deschloroetizolam, Flubromazepam, Bromazolam, and Flualprazolam were among the benzodiazepines found in the tablets that tested positive.
Additionally, the detectives blocked the three individuals’ bank accounts that they had used to withdraw approximately $4.4 million in cryptocurrencies.
The three guys were consequently accused of conspiring to make Class C narcotics and crimes related to money laundering.
On February 10th, 2023, Roshan and Patel admitted their guilt.
Allen pleaded not guilty throughout the trial and informed the jury that he was a licensed doctor and pharmacist. On May 9th, 2023, the jury, however, returned a guilty verdict.
The three individuals managed a sophisticated, massive manufacture of bogus medicinal medications that were marketed on the Dark Web and looked real. The main purpose of their business was to satisfy the avarice of those involved, who had no regard for the weak points of individuals who were buying these medications.
Some of the medications, some of which are quite harmful, had entirely different compounds from those that should be in the real pills.
The three will be ordered to relinquish the earnings of the narcotics trafficking business during a confiscation court.
The trio’s sentence hasn’t yet been scheduled.