A federal grand jury has charged Behrouz Parsarad, a 36-year-old Iranian national from Tehran, for founding and running Nemesis Market, a notorious dark web marketplace known for illegal drug sales and various criminal cyber-services.
The charges highlight Parsarad’s alleged role in facilitating the sale of dangerous substances, including fentanyl, methamphetamine, and opioids, along with fraudulent identification documents, stolen financial information, and counterfeit currencies.
Nemesis Market’s Global Reach and Illegal Activity
Nemesis Market, launched in March 2021, quickly grew to become a global platform, boasting over 150,000 users and more than 1,100 vendor accounts.
Between 2021 and 2024, the marketplace processed over 400,000 transactions, with a significant portion of the sales tied to illegal drugs.
Among these, over 55,000 orders were for stimulants like methamphetamine and cocaine, while another 17,000 were for opioids, including heroin and fentanyl.
Authorities confirmed that several substances purchased from the site contained fentanyl, a highly potent and illegal drug that continues to fuel the opioid crisis in the U.S.
International Cooperation and Seizure of Dark Web Marketplace
The indictment, issued in the Northern District of Ohio, follows a joint investigation by U.S. law enforcement agencies and their international partners, including German and Lithuanian authorities.
Through this collaboration, law enforcement successfully seized the servers and infrastructure of Nemesis Market, effectively halting the illegal flow of drugs and contraband into the U.S.
The Justice Department emphasized that this case is part of an ongoing commitment to combat darknet crime, with significant efforts to prevent the distribution of dangerous substances like fentanyl.
Charges Faced by Parsarad and the Scope of the Operation
Parsarad is facing serious charges, including conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, money laundering, and operating a dark web marketplace for illegal drugs.
Authorities allege that Parsarad’s actions facilitated the distribution of nearly $30 million worth of illegal drugs between 2021 and 2024.
The marketplace exclusively accepted cryptocurrency for transactions, a method used to conceal the illicit origin of funds and evade detection.
Parsarad is also accused of laundering these illicit proceeds through the mixing of cryptocurrencies to obscure their traceability.
International Efforts and Law Enforcement Collaboration
The indictment emphasizes the importance of international cooperation in combating dark web crime, with U.S. law enforcement partnering with global agencies to bring the operation to a halt.
The FBI, DEA, IRS-CI, and other U.S. agencies, along with their counterparts in the U.K., Germany, Lithuania, and Turkey, played crucial roles in dismantling Nemesis Market.
The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) also imposed sanctions on Parsarad, further isolating him and his operation from the global financial system.
Potential Penalties and Legal Proceedings
If convicted, Parsarad faces serious legal consequences, including a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison, with the possibility of a life sentence.
The case is currently being prosecuted by the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, with trial attorney Gaelin Bernstein leading the charge, alongside Assistant U.S. Attorney Segev Phillips.
This investigation is part of the larger Joint Criminal Opioid and Darknet Enforcement (J-CODE) initiative, which combines the efforts of federal agencies to target illegal activities on the dark web and reduce the flow of harmful drugs into U.S. communities.
As of now, Parsarad is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law, with further legal proceedings expected to unfold.
