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FSB shuts down massive pipeline for sale of synthetic drugs on darknet

Five members of a nationwide criminal gang have been apprehended in Moscow, and in the Rostov, Astrakhan and Krasnodar Regions

MOSCOW, September 24. /TASS/. Russia’s Federal Security Service has dismantled a massive pipeline for the supply and sale of synthetic drugs on the darknet, detaining five members of a drug-trafficking gang in four regions, the FSB’s Public Relations Center told TASS on Friday.

"The Federal Security Service has liquidated one of the largest channels for the supply and sale of synthetic drugs on an especially large scale through online stores on the darknet," the FSB noted.

Five members of a nationwide criminal gang have been apprehended in Moscow, and in the Rostov, Astrakhan and Krasnodar Regions. "Among those arrested is the mastermind behind the production and distribution channels for drugs, and coordinating illegal activities from Turkey," the FSB said.

Earlier, the federal agency thwarted the activities of an underground laboratory, which produced over 500 kilograms of drugs per month in the Moscow Region. More than 60 kilograms of mephedrone, 6,000 liters of liquid narcotics, 1,500 kilograms of precursors and 22,000 kilograms of chemical reagents were seized from illegal trafficking. "The investigating authorities are pressing charges and have opened criminal cases, and the detainees have been remanded in custody," the FSB stated.

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