If you are going to run one of many world’s largest darkish net drug market, it is in all probability a good suggestion to not have laundered loot delivered to your entrance door.
That, in keeping with US and German prosecutors, is what 49-year-old Owe Martin Andresen did – and it has helped land him in custody the place he’s going through cash laundering expenses on each side of the Atlantic.
Andresen was arrested at his house on 7 Might 2026 by German police. Prosecutors allege he’s “Speedstepper” – the suspected most important administrator of the infamous Dream Market darkish net market that operated from 2013 till its abrupt closure in 2019.
A US Division of Justice press launch describes Dream Market as having been one of many largest illicit marketplaces on the darkish net, taking part in host to virtually 100,000 listings at anyone time.
In its six-year existence, US authorities declare that Dream Market facilitated the sale of greater than 90kg of heroin, 450kg of cocaine, 25kg of crack cocaine, 45kg of methamphetamine, 13kg of oxycodone, and 36kg of fentanyl. However along with medicine, it additionally did a brisk commerce in stolen information, counterfeit id paperwork, and different felony materials.
Previously, Dream Market’s lower-ranking directors have been apprehended.
For example, Frenchman Gal Vallerius (recognized on the location as “Oxymonster”) was arrested in 2017 after flying to america to compete within the World Beard and Mustache Championships (No, I am not making this up). He was subsequently sentenced to twenty years in jail.
Different admins who used the net handles “KITT3N” and “GOWRON” have additionally been convicted.
However Speedtstepper – the particular person supposedly on the prime of the Dream Market operation – has remained out of attain of the authorities, years after the location shut down in 2019, citing the strain from regulation enforcement.
Dream Market’s cryptocurrency wallets, holding tens of millions of {dollars} price in fee funds, went dormant after the location’s closure. However in November and December 2022, somebody who had entry to Dream Market’s authentic personal keys started to maneuver funds round.
Prosecutors allege that the person who moved the funds was Andresen. They declare that he consolidated the contents of the previous Dream Market wallets into new ones, after which, in August 2023, used an Atlanta-based cryptocurrency service to transform the proceeds into gold bars bought from worldwide sellers.
And, in keeping with the indictment, these gold bars had been shipped on to Andresen’s house deal with in Germany.
If the claims of prosecutors are true, it was an enormous error by the person suspected of being the Dream Market kingpin.
In all, prosecutors say that Andresen laundered greater than US $2 million between August 2023 and April 2025.
German police looking Andresen’s resident and two different areas earlier this month are reported to have seized roughly US $1.7 million in gold bars, over $23,000 in money, and recognized financial institution accounts and crypto wallets containing roughly US $1.2 million extra.
Andresen is at present going through expenses in each america and Germany, and is presumed harmless till confirmed responsible.
If prosecutors are in a position to persuade the courtroom that Andresen is responsible, he probably faces a considerable jail sentence – lengthy sufficient for anybody to surprise if sending gold bars to their very own entrance door is actually such a smart transfer.
