Germany takes down illegal online market 'Crimenetwork'

Berlin: German prosecutors on Tuesday said they had broken up an illegal online trading platform for drugs, stolen data and other illicit goods called...

Berlin: German prosecutors on Tuesday said they had broken up an illegal online trading platform for drugs, stolen data and other illicit goods called "Crimenetwork", and arrested one of its administrators.

They said the platform, operating since 2012, was "considered the biggest German-language online marketplace for the underground economy".

With more than 100 vendors and 100,000 customers, it allegedly served as a marketplace for illegal goods and services including counterfeit documents.

Prosecutors said in a statement that its servers had been shut down and that "alongside many other pieces of evidence and expensive vehicles, around a million euros' worth of cryptocurrency was also seized".

An unidentified 29-year-old man suspected of acting as one of the administrators of the site was arrested on Monday and faces several charges including illegal trading in narcotics.