The organizers of HYDRA, the largest darknet site for drug trafficking, have been sentenced by the court in the Moscow region, according to a report by the regional prosecutor’s office. Stanislav Moiseev, the main organizer, received a life sentence and a fine of 4 million rubles. Other accomplices were sentenced to imprisonment ranging from 8 to 23 years, with fines totaling 16 million rubles. The convicts will serve their sentences in special and strict regime correctional colonies.
During the trial, it was revealed that the criminal community operated from 2015 to October 2018 in Russia and Belarus. Communication among members was primarily conducted through the Internet and telephone. The distribution of drugs occurred in a contactless manner through hidden compartments in various locations. Law enforcement seized nearly a ton of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances during searches of the defendants’ residences in different regions of Russia.
As part of the sentencing, the court ordered the confiscation of the convicts’ assets, including vehicles, land plots, and real estate. These assets were also frozen to ensure the payment of fines. The sentence is not yet final and can be appealed.
In April 2022, the US Department of Justice announced the shutdown of Hydra Market, stating that the platform was involved in approximately 80% of dark market transactions in 2021. Since 2015, Hydra had amassed around $5.2 billion in cryptocurrency. In a joint operation with the German Federal Criminal Police, authorities seized Hydra’s servers and cryptocurrencies containing bitcoins worth $25 million.