The co-creator of a dark web cybercriminal forum called Empire Market was sentenced this week to 40 years in federal prison for his role in helping people sell drugs, hacking tools and stolen information. 

Raheim Hamilton, 30, pleaded guilty earlier this year to a drug conspiracy charge and agreed to forfeit more than $100 million worth of Bitcoin and several properties in Virginia. On Monday U.S. District Judge Steven Seeger issued the 40-year sentence and fined him $5 million. 

The Virginia native partnered with Thomas Pavey in owning and operating Empire Market from 2018 to 2020. The platform quickly became popular among drug dealers and cybercriminals — allowing them to sell narcotics, stolen account credentials, stolen documents, fake currency and hacking tools. 

More than 4 million transactions were conducted on the site for a total volume of $430 million. The vast majority of activity involved drug sales, which accounted for about $375 million, according to prosecutors. 

Dealers sold troves of fentanyl, cocaine, methamphetamine and heroin.

The platform grew in popularity because people could use encryption services to communicate and allowed users to launder money made from sales through cryptocurrency washing services called mixers.