Rui-Siang Lin, known by several aliases including "Pharoah" and "faro," has pled guilty to charges related to his operation of "Incognito Market," a major online dark web marketplace for illegal narcotics. The plea was announced by Edward Y. Kim, Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York. Lin admitted guilt to charges of narcotics conspiracy, money laundering, and conspiracy to sell adulterated and misbranded medication.
Acting U.S. Attorney Kim remarked, “Rui-Siang Lin led a prolific online narcotics bazaar that sold more than $100 million of narcotics around the world. While Lin profited millions of dollars from his sophisticated scheme, the community suffered. Lin and his 'Incognito Market' exacerbated the opioid and fentanyl crisis and put the community in danger. Lin now faces a lengthy term in prison.”
The Incognito Market operated on the dark web from October 2020 until its closure in March 2024. During this period, it facilitated global sales exceeding $100 million in illegal drugs such as cocaine and methamphetamines through a platform accessible via the Tor browser. As "Pharoah," Lin managed all aspects of the site, overseeing employees, vendors, and customers.
Lin's market functioned similarly to legitimate e-commerce sites with features like branding and customer service but specialized in illicit goods. Users could log in with unique credentials to access thousands of listings for various drugs including heroin, LSD, MDMA, oxycodone (which was often counterfeit), ketamine, and alprazolam.
Vendors on Incognito Market paid an admission fee to list their products and were charged a 5% fee on sales which funded operations such as salaries and server costs. Transactions were conducted using cryptocurrency through an internal banking system designed to maintain user anonymity.
Lin is set for sentencing on March 27, 2025. He faces significant prison time: a minimum of 10 years for narcotics conspiracy up to life imprisonment; up to 20 years for money laundering; and up to five years for selling adulterated medications.
The investigation involved multiple agencies including the FBI, Homeland Security Investigations, DEA, FDA Office of Criminal Investigations, NYPD as part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation aimed at dismantling high-level criminal organizations.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ryan B. Finkel and Nicholas Chiuchiolo are leading the prosecution under the Office’s Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit.