Empire Market
Among the most popular marketplaces of its time, it went offline in August 2020 in an apparent exit scam with roughly $30 million in user funds.
History
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Oct 9, 2026
other
Empire Market co-creator Raheim Hamilton was sentenced in Chicago to 40 years in prison and fined $5 million for operating the marketplace, which handled roughly $430 million in illicit trade; he also forfeited 1,230 BTC. The marketplace itself remains of
A federal judge in Chicago sentenced Empire Market co-creator Raheim Hamilton to 40 years in prison and imposed a $5 million fine over the operation of the dark web marketplace, which the reporting values at about $430 million in illicit trade. Hamilton also forfeited 1,230 BTC as part of the judgment. The sentencing is the newest dated development concerning the market, which was already offline; watch for forfeiture proceedings and any related charges against other operators.
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Aug 27, 2020
exit
Empire Market exit-scams with roughly 30 million dollars
Empire Market disappeared in late August 2020 in an apparent exit scam, with an admin reportedly fleeing with roughly 30 million dollars in user funds.
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Aug 27, 2020
exit
Once among the most popular darknet drug marketplaces; went offline in August 2020 in an apparent exit scam, with an admin reportedly fleeing with roughly $30 million in user funds.
Vice reported on 2020-08-27 that Empire Market disappeared with about $30 million of users' money; a site admin claimed the market had been paying a hacker $15,000 per week before shutting down and absconding with user funds. A follow-up article dated 2020-08-28 on 2oceansvibe corroborates the disappearance of the market.