Germany’s Federal Police Shuts Down the Country’s Largest Online Crime Marketplace
Published on December 4, 2024
- Crimenetwork was the most prominent German crime marketplace, operating since 2012.
- Germany’s federal police seized evidence, vehicles, and one million euros in crypto.
- A 29-year-old man, who acted as the platform’s technical administrator, was arrested.
Following an exhaustive and meticulous investigation, the Public Prosecutor’s Office in Frankfurt am Main, the Central Office for Combating Cybercrime (ZIT), and the German Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) announced the takedown of Crimenetwork, the largest online cybercrime marketplace in the country.
As per the BKA’s announcement, Crimenetwork was considered the largest German-language marketplace for the underground economy. It is believed to have had 100,000 users and over 100 registered resellers. It has been in operation since 2012 and was used to sell stolen data, drugs, and document forging.
Between 2018 and 2024, the online platform hosted over 1,000 Bitcoin (BTC) and 20,000 Monero (XMR) transactions. Since Crimenetwork operated on a 1-5% cut and monthly subscription fees from sellers, its owners have earned more than $5,000,000 in the last six years.
Shutting down Crimenetwork also resulted in collecting extensive evidence, high-quality vehicles, and assets worth around one million euros. One arrest has also been made of a 29-year-old platform administrator known as “Techmin.”
The arrested individual is believed to have been a technical administrator for Crimenetwork for several years. He is now suspected of operating criminal trading platforms on the Internet under Section 127 of the Criminal Code, as well as trafficking in narcotics under Sections 29a and 30a of the Narcotics Act.
The BKA notes that this successful takedown was made possible thanks to the close cooperation with the Politie Zeeland-West-Brabrant from the Netherlands. This international collaboration was instrumental in seizing extensive user and transaction data, which will likely lead to further revelations about Crimenetwork’s operators and users in the near future.
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