In an international operation coordinated between six countries and supported by Europol and Eurojust, law enforcement authorities have dismantled ‘Archetyp Market’, one of the world’s most prolific darknet marketplaces for illicit drug trade.
Founded over five years ago, Archetyp Market had grown into a major hub for the anonymous sale of illicit drugs, including fentanyl, cocaine, amphetamines, heroin, and MDMA. It hosted over 17,000 active listings, with more than 612,000 customer accounts and approximately 3,200 registered vendors. Transactions on the platform were exclusively conducted in the privacy-focused cryptocurrency Monero. Law enforcement estimates the platform facilitated at least €250 million in drug sales.
Between June 11 and 13, more than 300 officers carried out synchronized enforcement actions across Germany, the Netherlands, Romania, Spain, Sweden, and other involved nations. The operation, led by Germany’s Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) and the Frankfurt Public Prosecutor's Office – Central Office for Combating Internet Crime (ZIT), targeted the marketplace’s administrator, moderators, key vendors, and underlying technical infrastructure.
The 30-year-old alleged administrator, a German national, was arrested in Barcelona, Spain, by a special unit of the Spanish National Police.
Authorities also searched properties linked to the suspect in Barcelona, Hanover, the Minden-Lübbecke district, and Bucharest, Romania. During the raids, investigators seized eight mobile phones, four computers, 34 data storage devices, and assets valued at approximately €7.8 million.
As part of the operation, Dutch authorities shut down the server infrastructure hosted in a data center in the Netherlands. Further coordinated raids in Germany and Sweden targeted additional moderators and six of the marketplace’s highest-earning vendors. Seven suspects were arrested in Sweden. In total, 20 properties across Germany and Sweden were searched, leading to the seizure of 47 smartphones, 45 computers, various quantities of narcotics, and additional digital evidence.
