- The U.S. Department of Justice and Europol announced the results of Operation TorNado, which ran from May 2025 to October 2026 to target darknet networks trafficking fentanyl, opioids and other drugs.
- The campaign was the sixth international operation by the Joint Criminal Opioid and Darknet Enforcement team and the largest in the initiative’s history.
- Authorities arrested 354 suspects and seized more than $234 million in cash and virtual currencies, about 5.7 tonnes of drugs and 209 firearms.
The U.S. Department of Justice and Europol announced the results of the operation, which involved law enforcement in the United States, European countries, Australia and New Zealand. The JCODE initiative was established in 2018.
Investigators targeted sellers and buyers who used darknet platforms including Archetyp, Bohemia, Nemesis, Kingdom and Tor2Door. The operation also showed how investigators use blockchain transaction analysis to identify real-world participants in illicit networks that rely on digital assets for payments.
“Operation TorNado crippled Dark Web market vendors and will bring alleged drug traffickers to justice,” said Todd Blanche, U.S. attorney general.
Authorities seize drugs, firearms and assets
Authorities arrested 132 suspects in the United States, 59 in the United Kingdom, 45 in Hungary, 41 in Germany and 23 in France. Arrests also took place in the Netherlands, New Zealand, Slovenia, Austria, the Czech Republic, Ireland, Finland and Australia.
Law enforcement seized more than $234 million in cash and virtual currencies. Authorities also confiscated about 5.7 tonnes of fentanyl, other opioids, methamphetamine, heroin, cocaine and MDMA, along with 38 pill presses and 209 firearms.
FBI Director Kash Patel called TorNado the largest interagency operation against darknet drug sellers and buyers. He said it also demonstrated how law enforcement cyber capabilities can counter criminal networks operating across borders.
Blockchain analysis links alleged operators to BarbaraWhite
The operation included the arrest of Florida brothers Stanislav and Vladislav Chernyshov, who are suspected of operating the BarbaraWhite darknet shop. The shop allegedly sold counterfeit oxycodone pills containing nitazenes, synthetic opioids that may be no less dangerous than fentanyl.
According to Chainalysis, BarbaraWhite had operated since at least 2020 on the Nemesis, Bohemia and Abacus platforms. Data from those three marketplaces indicated that the vendor sold more than 95,000 counterfeit pills. The company estimated that the network’s activity was associated with at least 12 overdoses in the United States, including three deaths.
Blockchain analysis helped investigators trace funds from darknet marketplace sales to wallets linked to the suspects. Researchers identified about $220,000 in inflows from marketplaces and roughly $230,000 in outbound cryptocurrency transfers.
Recipients included a postal service, another drug vendor and a Chinese chemical supplier, which received about $7,210, according to the investigation. The transactions helped establish links between BarbaraWhite’s cryptocurrency wallets and other addresses that investigators tied to Stanislav Chernyshov’s mobile payment account. Chainalysis described the fund flows in a Nov. 12, 2026, post.
The Justice Department said investigations into some darknet accounts remain underway. Other cases included the arrest of the STARLABS vendor, who investigators said used DrugHub, a marketplace that supported only Monero, and the dismantling of networks distributing heroin, fentanyl and counterfeit medicines.
“The dark web is not a safe haven for criminals,” said John Condon, acting deputy executive associate director of Homeland Security Investigations.
Source: Incrypted
