A federal judge in Chicago sentenced Raheim Hamilton, co-creator of the dark web drug platform Empire Market, to 40 years in prison and imposed a $5 million fine. According to reports from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Illinois, Hamilton agreed to forfeit 1,230 bitcoin worth approximately $101 million, along with 24.4 ether worth about $60,000 and three properties. Hamilton, 30, of Suffolk, Virginia, was sentenced on Monday for his role in operating the illicit marketplace from 2018 to 2020. Hamilton used the aliases 'Sydney' and 'ZeroAngel' during his operations on the platform.
Prosecutors revealed that Empire Market facilitated more than 4 million drug transactions from 2018 to 2020, with drug sales accounting for nearly $375 million of the site's total activity. As reported by the Justice Department, the platform's total activity exceeded $430 million during its operational period. The site also facilitated the sale of stolen account credentials, personal data, counterfeit currency, and hacking tools, requiring customers to use cryptocurrency and encouraging them to use mixing services to obscure fund movements. The closure of Empire Market left a vacuum that other underground vendors have begun to fill, often with more aggressive extortion tactics.
Hamilton's partner, Thomas Pavey, 41, of Ormond Beach, Florida, pleaded guilty to a federal drug conspiracy charge and forfeited 1,584 bitcoin and other assets ahead of his sentencing. According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Pavey also gave up his rights to two boxes containing 25-ounce gold bars, three automobiles, and two properties in Florida. Pavey is set to be sentenced later this month. Together, the two men's coins total 2,814 BTC, approximately $234 million at Bitcoin's current price of $83,045.
The forfeited bitcoin will be subject to the March 2025 White House executive order, which directs Bitcoin forfeited in criminal or civil cases into the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve. Coins placed in this reserve cannot be sold, though the order allows exceptions including returning funds to identifiable crime victims. The DOJ release did not specify where Hamilton's coins will end up, and the DOJ did not indicate whether any exceptions will apply. Congress is also considering similar legislation, with a House committee voting 28-21 on September 16 to advance a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve bill that would hold forfeited BTC for at least 20 years.
