New U.S. task force to investigate crypto crimes

 

Five federal enforcement agencies have recently established a new U.S. crypto crime task force dubbed the Darknet Marketplace and Digital Currency Crimes Task Force in Arizona.  The new interagency group will investigate how criminal gangs in the U.S. state use crypto and the dark web to commit various crimes, including child exploitation, personal data theft, scams, money laundering, and drug trafficking.  The agencies forming the task force include the Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Arizona, the Office for U.S. Attorneys, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Criminal Investigation, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Postal Inspection Service. The representatives from these agencies signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to establish the unit.  The agencies have already worked together for nearly six years to spot high-profile drug trafficking cases.  The new task force mainly aims to provide increased collaboration between the agencies, enhance resources, and disrupt criminal groups using crypto, the dark web, and other emerging technologies.  In February 2022, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) also established a Virtual Asset Exploitation Unit. The division actively works with the Justice Department National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team, founded in 2021, to focus on crypto-related crimes.