Raheim Hamilton sentenced to 40 years for Empire Market darknet operation

Raheim Hamilton, 30, was sentenced on October 5, 2026, to 40 years in federal prison and fined $5 million for co-operating Empire Market, a darknet platform that processed over $430 million in transactions between 2018 and 2020. Hamilton agreed to forfeit 1,230 bitcoin and other assets, while co-creator Thomas Pavey forfeited 1,584 bitcoin ahead of his upcoming sentencing. Empire Market generated nearly $375 million in drug sales before shutting down in 2020.

Raheim Hamilton conviction and sentencing

• ▪Raheim Hamilton pleaded guilty in 2026 to a federal drug conspiracy charge for co-creating and operating the dark web platform Empire Market from 2018 to 2020
• ▪U.S. District Judge Steven C. Seeger in Chicago sentenced 30-year-old Raheim Hamilton of Suffolk, Virginia to 40 years in federal prison and fined him $5 million on October 5, 2026
• ▪Raheim Hamilton agreed to forfeit 1,230 bitcoin worth about $101 million, 24.4 ether worth about $60,000, and three real estate properties located in Virginia

Thomas Pavey conviction and forfeitures

• ▪Thomas Pavey agreed to forfeit 1,584 bitcoin, two boxes containing 25-ounce gold bars, three automobiles, and two real estate properties in Florida
• ▪Co-creator of Empire Market Thomas Pavey, 41, of Ormond Beach, Florida, pleaded guilty in 2025 to a federal drug conspiracy charge for his role in Empire Market
• ▪Thomas Pavey is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Steven C. Seeger in Chicago later in October 2026

Empire Market scale and history

• ▪Empire Market facilitated over four million transactions between vendors and buyers totaling more than $430 million in activity between 2018 and 2020
• ▪Empire Market vendors sold stolen account credentials, personal data, counterfeit currency, and hacking tools, while buyers rated vendors on drug shipping concealment
• ▪Illicit drug sales accounted for nearly $375 million of Empire Market's activity, including at least 13.3 kilograms of fentanyl, 447 kilograms of cocaine, and 103 kilograms of heroin
• ▪Empire Market launched in February 2018 following the law enforcement takedown of AlphaBay and went offline in August 2020 in a suspected $30 million exit scam, according to TRM Labs

Empire Market cryptocurrency payment rules

• ▪Empire Market operators required every marketplace transaction between buyers and vendors to be conducted in cryptocurrency
• ▪Empire Market operators encouraged users to run their cryptocurrency funds through tumbling and mixing services to obscure transactions

Helix bitcoin mixing service

• ▪Drug traffickers and other criminals used darknet bitcoin mixing service Helix to launder at least 354,468 bitcoin, according to the U.S. Department of Justice
• ▪U.S. federal authorities seized $400 million in cryptocurrency, cash, and real estate linked to darknet bitcoin mixing service Helix

Debatable claims

• ▪Hamilton's 40-year sentence is a proportional response to facilitating large-scale drug distribution
• ▪Darknet platform creators bear equal criminal responsibility to the vendors selling illegal drugs
• ▪Governments should ban cryptocurrency mixing services to prevent darknet money laundering