The Justice Department successfully shut down AlphaBay, a major online marketplace on the “dark web” that facilitated the sale of illegal drugs, stolen identities, and other illicit goods. The takedown, a joint effort with law enforcement authorities in multiple countries, involved the arrest and subsequent death of AlphaBay's creator, Alexandre Cazes. The seizure of AlphaBay's infrastructure, which included the freezing of millions of dollars in cryptocurrency, was a major blow to the dark web's criminal economy. The Justice Department stated that AlphaBay was responsible for thousands of overdose deaths across the U.S. and was estimated to have over 200,000 users.

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