Rui-Siang Lin, the alleged operator of the dark web drug marketplace “Incognito Market,” was sentenced Tuesday to 30 years in U.S. federal prison, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, ending one of the largest online drug market prosecutions since Silk Road.
Lin, a 24-year-old Taiwanese national who used the online alias “Pharaoh,” pleaded guilty in December 2024 to drug conspiracy, money laundering and conspiracy to sell adulterated and misbranded drugs. Prosecutors said the platform processed more than $105 million in illegal drug sales between October 2020 and March 2024, facilitating more than 640,000 transactions and serving hundreds of thousands of buyers worldwide.
“Rui-Siang Lin was one of the world’s most prolific drug traffickers, using the Internet to sell more than $105 million worth of illegal drugs throughout this country and around the world,” U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton said in a statement. “Even though Lin made millions, his crimes had devastating consequences. He is responsible for at least one tragic death, and he exacerbated the opioid crisis and caused misery for more than 470,000 drug users and their families.”
Investigators ultimately traced the operation not only through blockchain analysis and secret purchases, but also through operational security flaws.
According to the initial SDNY criminal complaint, investigators were able to trace the market area back to Lin because he used his real name as well as a phone number and address during the registration process.
Taiwanese media say Lin studied at National Taiwan University before completing Taiwan’s civilian “alternative service,” a mandatory national service pathway outside the military, in St. Lucia, where he worked in a technical support role and sometimes taught local police about cybercrime and cryptocurrency.
