An international operation initiated by the US and with the cooperation of Brazilian authorities resulted in the seizure of BRL 275 million in cryptocurrencies, money and various other assets.
Caused by Joint criminal enforcement of opioids and darknets (JCODE), the anti-drug trafficking division of deep webOperation SpecTor took place simultaneously in several countries.
Brazil represented Latin America in the operation through the Cybernetic Operations Laboratory of the Directorate of Integrated Operations and Intelligence (Ciberlab/Diop), of the National Public Security Secretariat (Senasp).
Civilian police officers from Piauí and Brasília also participated, respectively through the Directorate of Intelligence and the Special Police Station for Combating Cybercrime. The international action took place last Tuesday (2).
Understand the international operation that seized money and cryptocurrencies from suspects, also with the support of Brazil
In a note, the US FBI has enthusiastically released the balance sheet of Operation SpecTor, as it is the one that has arrested the most people in history.
“Law enforcement also made more seizures than any previous operation, including 117 firearms, 850 kilograms of drugs, including 64 kilograms of fentanyl or fentanyl-laced narcotics, and $53.4 million in cash and virtual currency.”
The operation was aimed at targeting deep web trading in the US, Europe and Latin America. With that, US Attorney General Merrick B. Garland stated that the US government has sent a clear signal to criminals.
“Operation SpecTor was a coordinated international law enforcement effort spanning three continents to disrupt drug trafficking on the dark web and represents the largest number of funds seized and the largest number of arrests in a coordinated international action led by the Department of Human Resources. drug dealers on the dark web. Our message to criminals on the dark web is this: you can try to hide in the farthest corners of the internet, but the Justice Department will find you and hold you accountable for your crimes.”
288 people have been arrested in 50 countries
As the operation spanned 50 countries and resulted in the arrest of 288 people, authorities are celebrating the great success of Operation SpecTor against international human trafficking.
In Brazil, Ciberlab coordinator, Alessandro Barreto, says the move demonstrates the importance of integration in the fight against cybercrime.
“The action shows the importance of integration in the fight against cybercrime. Ciberlab is already working in this direction, conducting integrated operations in cyberspace. With Spector, we strengthen Brazil’s presence in an international cooperation scenario and above all show that it is possible to investigate crimes on the deep web that the criminal cannot completely hide.”
Brazilian authorities have not confirmed how many people have been arrested in the country, nor whether suspects also possessed money and cryptocurrencies. In addition, it is unclear how much has been seized specifically in cryptocurrencies, as authorities released the information in conjunction with the cash seizure. Finally, the main operations took place in Brasília (DF) and in the state of Piauí (PI).
Source: Live Coins
Barry Siefert is an accomplished journalist and author at The Nation View. He is known for his expertise in the field of cryptocurrency, and has written extensively on the topic. With a background in finance and economics, Barry has a deep understanding of the underlying technology and market forces that drive the crypto industry.
