Rui-Siang Lin, the founder of the dark web drug marketplace Incognito Market, has been sentenced to 30 years in prison. In one of the largest crypto dark web cases to date, a US federal judge ordered Lin to forfeit more than $105 million. This incident marks a major crackdown on the use of digital assets in the illegal online drug trade.
As prosecutors noted, Incognito Market operated as a global narcotics hub. It reportedly facilitated over 640,000 transactions worth more than $105 million in crypto between 2020 and 2024. Lin’s sentencing follows his guilty plea to narcotics conspiracy and money-laundering charges, bringing an end to a platform that relied on anonymous crypto payments to sell illicit drugs worldwide.
Crypto Dark Web Drug Sales End in 30-Year Sentence
A federal judge has reportedly sentenced Rui-Siang Lin, the founder of Incognito Market, to 30 years in prison. He is punished for running a crypto dark web marketplace that enabled over $105 million in illegal drug sales.
According to the US prosecutors’ statement, the crypto dark web platform used digital asset payments and a built-in system called “Incognito Bank” to help buyers and sellers trade anonymously. Lin, who was known online as “Pharaoh,” pleaded guilty to drug trafficking, money laundering, and selling tainted medication in December 2024.
Authorities stated that the crypto dark web platform sold more than a ton of illegal drugs worldwide since its launch in October 2020. It was later shut down in March 2024.
Reportedly, Judge Colleen McMahon also ordered Lin to give up about $105 million. Lin was also asked to serve five years under supervised release after completing his prison sentence. The judge stated that Lin had turned himself into a “drug kingpin.” Judge McMahon sees this incident as the most serious drug case she has ever seen.
As per US Attorney Jay Clayton’s statement, the crypto dark web marketplace operator has gained millions by taking advantage of digital assets’ anonymity. For Clayton, the impact of such illegal businesses is far-reaching and “devastating.” Prosecutors claim that the operation resulted in at least one death and caused harm to more than 470,000 drug users.
How Incognito Market Operated
Court documents cite that Incognito Market grew into a massive dark web platform, with more than 40,000 buyers and over 1,800 sellers. The crypto dark web platform handled more than 640,000 digital assets-based transactions. In January 2022, Lin allowed vendors to sell opiates, after which the site began listing drugs marketed as prescription medicines. Some of these products were later identified as containing fentanyl.
As per reports, the platform uses an in-house payment system called Incognito Market, which allows users to store cryptocurrencies. Following a sale, funds were automatically moved from the buyer to the seller, with the crypto dark web marketplace taking a 5% cut. Prosecutors said this setup allowed both sides to remain anonymous.
The reports allege that the platform has sold a wide range of illegal drugs, including heroin, cocaine, LSD, MDMA, methamphetamine, ketamine, alprazolam, and oxycodone. The illegal sales include more than one ton each of cocaine and meth, along with thousands of pills sold as oxycodone.
