Global operation takes down dark web drug marketplace

Europol headquarters in The Hague, Netherlands (Peter Dejong/AP)

Law enforcement agencies around the world have seized an online marketplace and arrested nearly 300 people allegedly involved in buying and selling drugs, European Union law enforcement agency Europol said.

The worldwide operation targeting the “Monopoly Market”, co-ordinated by Europol, is the latest major takedown of sales platforms for drugs and other illicit goods on the so-called dark web, a part of the internet hosted within an encrypted network and accessible only through specialised anonymity-providing tools.