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Devlin Hosner, a Southern California resident, admitted he sold fentanyl and meth on the dark web.
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He teamed up with someone else to push fake pills online, then tried to hide the money by moving it through cryptocurrency.
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Hosner now faces a minimum of 10 years, potentially life, in prison.
A man from Southern California might spend the rest of his life in jail for running an illegal dark web drug business and cashing out using crypto.
Based on the report, his operation distributed fake pills containing a very harmful drug called fentanyl.
Dark Web Drug Ring’s Mode of Operation
Holly Adams, 35 years old from Palm Desert, and Devlin Hosner, 36 years old from Indio, worked together as vendors to sell illegal narcotics through the dark web between 2020 – 2022. They used sites such as ToRReZ and Dark0de to fly under the radar.
Their big seller? Fake oxycodone pills, which they laced with fentanyl, a strong, real opioid. The two pulled in hundreds of thousands of dollars running this operation.
They used cryptocurrency tools to hide their illegal profits. This process is called money laundering. They shipped pills to buyers across the country using mail services.
The First Bust and Repeated Offense
Their operation first got busted in September 2021. Police tried to search their home, but Hosner tried to stop them.
His partner, Adams, took immediate action. She tried to destroy evidence by pouring pills into a chemical solution. The duo was arrested by law enforcement but later became free from state custody.
Nonetheless, they continued their internet drug business on the DarkNet, even though federal investigators were monitoring them this time.
In March 2022, authorities apprehended them at a hotel in Riverside County and found them in possession of one kilogram (2.2 pounds) of counterfeit oxycodone pills and sixty grams (2.1 ounces) of methamphetamine.
What Becomes of the Suspects
A special task force, the Northern California Illicit Digital Economy (NCIDE), which consists of many top federal agents, was in charge of this investigation.
Earlier this year, Hosner’s accomplice, Holly Adams, admitted to her role in the drug business. In June, the court sentenced her to 12 years in federal prison.
Devlin Hosner owned up to his crimes in court on December 9. Sentencing date’s set for March 24, 2026, and there’s a chance he could get a decade behind bars or life in jail.
A Trend of Public Trust Betrayed
This case shows a worrying trend: Criminals hide behind the dark web to sell drugs. Just recently, a former public servant got caught doing the same thing. This pattern is vividly illustrated in another major Southern California case, where a man recently pleaded guilty to running a nearly identical dark web drug empire, highlighting the region’s role as a hub for such operations.
These cases also show how often a simple mistake leads to the downfall of these supposedly anonymous operations. In a strikingly similar bust, a US man’s repeated calls to the post office ultimately unraveled his entire dark web drug scheme, proving that old-fashioned police work is still incredibly effective against digital crime.
Nicholas Banister, a 36-year-old ex-firefighter from Raleigh, and his wife, Amanda, copped to running a huge drug biz in North Carolina back in July. Word is that Nicholas exchanged his fire hose for drug deals. Same kind of setup as Hosner: he leaned on dark web suppliers and took payments in crypto.
But Banister added his own spin. He used Snapchat to advertise his stash, turning his account into a sort of takeout menu for people looking to score. It didn’t last; they arrested him when he sold cocaine to a cop undercover.
Upon searching his home, investigators found kilograms of meth and coke, guns, and cash of over $213,000. This proves social media isn’t just for photos now.
Cases like this have proven to us that social media is no longer just for sharing photos anymore. People now use it as an avenue to buy and sell drugs, and the worst part is, you never really know those involved. Sometimes those you least expect are the ones doing it.
Law enforcement has become better at catching these criminals. Task forces like NCIDE and national operations are targeting these crimes. They are trying to identify people on the dark web who sell dangerous items so that authorities can hold these sellers accountable.
