Stanislav Moiseev, the founder of Hydra, the notorious darknet market and crypto mixing platform, has been sentenced to life in prison by a Russian court. Hydra, once the largest darknet marketplace, handled over $5.2 billion in cryptocurrency transactions during its operation from 2015 to 2022, making headlines globally.

A Moscow Regional Court convicted Moiseev and 15 accomplices on charges including running a criminal network and trafficking psychotropic drugs. Sentences for the accomplices ranged from 8 to 23 years, and fines totaling $190,500 were imposed. Assets, including properties and vehicles linked to the group, were also seized.

The defendants will serve their sentences in strict-regime correctional colonies, according to state media outlet TASS. Hydra, which dominated 80% of darknet-related crypto transactions in 2021, was infamous for selling stolen credit card data, counterfeit currencies, and fake IDs. Its sophisticated operations saw its crypto transactions spike by 624% between 2018 and 2020, according to blockchain security firm Flashpoint.

German authorities dismantled Hydra in April 2022, seizing its servers and nearly a ton of drugs. The platform reportedly had 17 million users and 19,000 vendors at the time. Despite Hydra's shutdown, darknet marketplaces saw revenues of at least $1.7 billion in 2023, continuing to thrive in Hydra’s absence, as per Chainalysis.

The sentences are open to appeal, but the ruling marks a significant blow against darknet operations, emphasizing the global crackdown on cybercrime and crypto-fueled illegal activities. Moiseev’s conviction underscores the tightening grip of international law enforcement on illicit online platforms.